Afterglow
by devonshire64
Summary: The hunt for answers in a missing person's case heats up when a vengeful spirit targets one of the boys.
1. Chapter 1

_Hello everyone, i'm back again. _

_First off, i know i said the next story in the Something Lost series was 'on the turning away' but this story just flowed better after 'pawns' so i changed the order around a bit. also, i was gonna wait till i finished 'a door in the dark' but this story has stolen my muse, so i'm posting early. _

_I've been sick as of late, so a huge sorry to anyone reading 'a door in the dark' i know it's been a while, but i will hopefully have it up tomorrow. :) as always, enjoy and let me know what you think._

**D: this is all just for fun. **

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 1

The room was dark, the small space lit only by a dim lamp in the far corner. It was sparsely furnished, making the area seem bigger than it really was. It was emptier than any room he'd ever been in before, his footsteps echoing slightly as he made his way across the warn wood floor. Something was drawing him to the other side of the room. A shadow flicking in and out of existence was calling to him, beaconing him. It looked like a woman, at least from what he could make out. The figure's hair was long and dark, falling in soft waves over her slim shoulders. He knew he was walking into a potentially dangerous situation, knowing almost nothing about the shadow, but he still couldn't turn away.

Even though her back was to him, he could still feel her eyes boring into him, piercing his soul, looking through him. The figure was so familiar, yet still a stranger to him, like half a memory, or a long forgotten photograph. He knew her, every fiber of his being telling him he needed to go to her— but his mind still failed to put a name to the mysterious woman.

The heavy silence around him was suddenly broken, the room shrinking when the figure before him began to speak. No longer was he standing in an abyss, a shapeless room. No, now he stood in an apartment, the woman before him staring stoically out a large window, her pale skin shinning in the moonlight filtering through.

"This is what I was left with."

The room filled with her voice, the sound coming from everywhere except the woman. He still couldn't see her face, but he knew her lips weren't moving. He was staring at a scene that had already taken place, glimpsing a past he had missed the first time around. He wanted to answer, wanted to know why she was so alone, why she was lost to the past. He didn't know why, but he felt she should be surrounded by family, loved and protected, not left by herself in such dark solitude.

"Where's your family?" He heard himself ask, his voice echoing around the room just as the woman's had done.

"They're fighting for me, but I can't be save. None of us can be saved."

"What do you mean? Saved from what?"

"The war is coming, and we can't escape it. Not in life, and not in death."

The woman before him turned at the last statement, her pale eyes on fire, burning through him, crushing him with a weight he couldn't imagine. And, in that instant, all he could do was cry out.

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"Sam! Sam!" Dean shook his brother, the younger man laying still in the sheets, his body having gone limp after screaming out in pain. Dean had been on his feet in seconds, his brother's distress sending adrenaline coursing through his body. Sam had been a mess ever since leaving the Roadhouse and the Trickster nearly a month before hand. And, not for the first time, Dean wondered if the creature had done something to his younger brother.

"Dean?" Sam moaned, his dark eyes fluttering open, voice full of confusion.

"Yeah, you alright?"

"Uh, yeah I think so. What happened?" Sam asked, pushing himself up with his brother's assistance.

"Nightmare. Pretty bad one from the sound of it."

"Are you sure?"

"Well no, since I don't inhabit that freaky brain of yours, but that's what it looked like. What happened? What do you remember?"

"I was in a room, or an apartment, and there was this girl there."

"Is this gonna be R rated." Dean joked, smiling when he saw the tension in his brother's eyes dissipate. The nightmares had been taking their toll on the younger man, Dean could see it. Sam was paler, his eyes unfocused and tired, his body slimmer from the weight he'd lost.

Dean wanted to take away the pain, wanted to hunt down what was attacking his brother— but how do you take down a bad dream?

"Not even PG-13, Dean."

"Damn. So, a girl in a dark room, that's the same dream as before, right?"

"Yeah, but it was clearer."

"How so?"

"It wasn't just a dark, shapeless kind of room this time, I could see the whole apartment— and the girl."

"Figure out who she is yet?"

"No."

"And you don't think it's a vision?"

"Nah, this is different. It's almost like I'm watching something that already happened. But, Dean, she spoke to me this time."

"What? What'd she say?"

Sam had been having the same dream every few night since leaving Valley, but until that night, it had always been the same. Sam had recounted the dream so many times, Dean had started to feel like it was his own, and it was eating away at him. The older man knew it wasn't a coincidence, knew it wasn't just a dream. It had to have something to do with Sam's abilities, something to do with the Yellow Eyed Demon. Things didn't just happen in their lives— that was something Dean had learned long ago. Everyone around them seemed to have a plan, an ulterior motive, and he and his brother were always smack in the middle of it.

Dean's mind wandered back to the Roadhouse, to the day Sam collapsed in their friend Kerri's arms. She said she'd heard him mumbling something and had gone to see who he was talking to. Since then the pair had decided to kept the events of that day between them, much to Dean's annoyance, and he couldn't help but wonder if whatever had happened to his brother that day was related to his current condition. That single incident had been the start of what felt like an avalanche to Dean. Something was coming, something big, and he couldn't pull his brother away from the danger.

"She said, 'this is what I was left with'," Sam began, his voice pulling Dean back into the moment. "I felt like I should know her, too. I mean, last time it was just a shadow, but now I feel like I should know who she is."

"Did she say anything else?"

"Yeah, I asked where her family was and she said they were fighting for her, but couldn't save her. She said none of us could be saved."

"Well that's a little glass half empty. Is it the same person you saw in the Roadhouse?"

If Sam was caught off guard by the question he didn't show it. It was a tactic Dean had been trying for the past few week— wait till his brother was off his game, and spring the question. But apparently, no matter what was running through the younger man's mind, he was still sharp enough to see through his brother's antics.

"For the last time, I didn't see anyone at the Roadhouse."

"Whatever, you're gonna have to tell me sometime."

"Dean, there's nothing to tell."

"Oh no, so why'd you wake up screaming just now?" Dean began, filling a glass of water and handing it to Sam.

"What? No I didn't."

"Trust me, Sammy, you did. What happened?"

Sam visibly shuddered at the memory, taking a few sips of water before placing the glass on the night stand. "She said there was a war coming, one we couldn't escape in life or death. And then she turned around. I can't remember anything but her eyes, it felt like they were burning me."

"Does anything hurt now?" Dean asked, pulling out his cellphone as Sam rolled his eyes.

"Dean, who're you calling?"

"Bobby."

"We don't need Bobby. Look, Dean, just stop," Sam began, reaching for the phone. "I'm fine, I feel fine. It was just a dream."

"It's more than a dream, Sam."

"It's probably the hunt. I mean, we didn't get any rest after the Trickster."

Dean saw the statement for what it was, a diversion. Sam had always been tight lipped about his abilities, but ever since the Roadhouse, he'd clammed up more than Dean had ever seen. The elder Winchester knew in his heart it all had something to do with Kerri, something to so with whatever Sam, and possibly their long time friend, had witnessed in the bar's kitchen. But, like everything else in Dean's life, those events were shrouded in mystery, and he knew enough not to push— the truth would come to light on its own, or at least when Sam and Kerri were too screwed to keep the secret.

"Yeah maybe. I mean, going missing's gotta be hell on the one that actually disappears."

"Yeah, lost and alone, no one coming. That's probably what's triggering the dreams." Sam answered, obviously happy with the change in topic.

Now wide awake Dean continued the line of thought, leaning back against the headboard as he spoke. "We're still pretty much at square one, though."

"Yup. Small town, every few years a different number of people go missing, no one ever finds a trace."

"That's the extent of it. And there's nothing linking any of the victims?"

"No. They're all from different walks of life, different ages. Hell, a few of them were even out of towners."

"They all went missing around the same areas though, right?"

"Yeah, the old church down on Bishop. It's actually become a kind of urban legend, one kid went missing last year when his friend dared him to stay the night."

"But not everyone that spends the night there goes missing."

"No, sometimes whole groups of people stay there and nothing happens. Other times, five or six people will go missing in a night."

"And it's always the same night?"

"Yeah, June 11th."

"Which is what, two days from now?"

"Yup, and since it's nearly midnight now, that gives us forty eight hours to figure out what's going on."

"We'll figure it out, Sammy." Dean mumbled, sliding down into the sheets.

His mind drifted back to the dream Sam had described to him over and over again. The way his brother told it, it was pure and absolute solitude, and that simple fact made Dean shiver. Alone— it was a word Dean hated. It was like the sound of a cell door swinging closed, the sound of hope drifting away second by second. And, more often than not, being a hunter meant being alone.

It was something Dean never wanted to face, a reality he never wanted to be a part of, but he knew there were some things he couldn't out run. Everyone he knew ended up alone. It was the way things were, the way they had to be. Loving was dangerous in the hunting world. It gave the enemy ammunition against you, making you weak— but despite all that, Dean held on tight to the people he loved, and he let that link show. He refused to give in to the dark and lonely futures many, many hunters accepted as all they would ever have.

No, Dean held onto the small shred of faith he'd had his entire life. No matter what laid in their paths, no matter what obstacles life placed in front of him, Dean always believed he would have his family. Even when Sam went to school, even when John died, Dean still held onto to the lifeline, to the knowledge that, if he didn't allow it to happen, then it wouldn't.

Isolation, emptiness, solitude— they were three words he ran from, three words he fought, three words that haunted him, because, so far, they were three words he'd been unable to fight. He'd been whole, and then they'd left Valley, Wyoming— left Kerri and her family. But he regrouped, found himself again, found his footing, only to have the rug ripped out from under him again when Sam left for school. Dean was a fighter though, and no matter how much it had hurt, he'd survived that loneliness as well. He had held onto his family, and when his father left, Dean found Sam again.

But now, despite it all, he could feel the void creeping up on him again, and he knew exactly when the fissure had started. Kerri Harrison. He'd met the girl when he was six years old, had grown up with her and her sister Evelyn. She was as close to normal as he had ever gotten. His friendship with the fierce redhead had been like a port in a blinding storm, a place of refuge from a world that was trying to devour him whole. Even when their fathers' falling out had forced a twelve year separation, Dean had never once forgotten the acceptance and trust he had found there— the home he had found there.

And then, he'd returned.

Evelyn and her father Tom were dead, and Kerri was barely more than a shadow of her former self. Sure she was still the self assured trouble maker she'd always been, but a light had left her deep blue eyes. The spark that was her, the defiance that had fueled Dean when they were young was gone, replaced with a solemn acceptance. It was like she'd turned into a manifestation of everything Dean feared. She was alone, her large house miles away from a town that had shunned her since she was a child. Solitude, isolation, they were two words that now described Kerri to a T. And Dean was terrified that, one day, it would be him.

After all, her father was a hunter, her sister was one of the psychic children— her past and Dean's were nearly mirror images of each other. But, despite that, they'd somehow managed to forge two completely different paths, the roads diverging until only recently. And suddenly, Sam's dream came back to him. There was a war coming, he could feel it, the air growing heavier each passing moment, fear so thick it hung around the earth like a heavy smog. And, for some reason Dean knew he and his brother weren't the only two in the middle of it— and no amount of faith could save him from the possibility of being alone.


	2. Chapter 2

_hello everyone. thank you all for the great reviews and for waiting patiently for the next chappy ;). i now know i have mono :( so i've given myself off a few says at work. but, of course, my family all came in to visit at the same time. haha. as always, enjoy and let me know what you think. _

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 2

Sam sighed in frustration, pushing away his laptop and reaching for a french fry. He'd been scouring the internet all day, searching for something that linked all the victims, but still, there wasn't anything. Add to it the fact that nothing out of the ordinary had ever happened at the church, and Sam was stuck at square one— again. He felt betrayed by his research, if that was at all possible. The world of demons and haunts was usually an open book, countless mythologies reaching back throughout the ages, waiting for someone to study them, to learn from them. It was like opening a treasure chest, another world crossing the boundaries of time, recounting stories from long before.

But now, well now it was all just mocking him.

"You and your laptop having a fight or something?" Dean chimed in from across the table, a smirk plastered across his face.

Sam just rolled his eyes, leave it up to Dean to figure out exactly what was pissing him off.

"Aw, come on, Sammy, I'm sure you two can work it out."

"Bite me."

"So, I take it geek-boy extraordinaire is striking out— again."

"What do you mean 'again?'"

"You've been burned by the books before, little brother."

"You're not really helping, you know that."

"I never said anything about trying to help."

"If you're mister perfect then you tell me what you figured out?" Sam began, jabbing his fork into his streak with a little more force than was necessary.

"I thought I was the beauty and brawn, you're the brains."

"So you struck out, too, then."

"Don't count me out so soon, I was picking up you slack."

"Oh yeah." Sam began, crossing his arms. Why did he and his brother always seem ten years younger when they were trying to discuss something?

"Yeah. See, it just so happens that I found someone."

"That's great, I'm happy for you."

Dean just shot him a look, washing down a mouthful of food before answering. "You better learn to be nicer or I'm not gonna share my intel."

Sam just stared at him, his arms still crossed, waiting for the older man to continue.

"As it so happens, Sammy, I found a witness."

Sam opened and closed his mouth a few times, his arms falling to his sides as he stared at his smirking brother in disbelief. How had Dean managed to find a witness? Sam had been over account after account, each on saying nothing more than so and so just up and vanished.

"You liar."

"I'm not lying."

"Yes, you are. There were no witnesses, Dean."

"Says you."

"Says me and every police report."

"Oh yeah, 'cause the police do such a bang up job when it comes to hunting."

"This may not be anything supernatural, we already discussed that."

"Oh well, my intel puts this way beyond normal."

"Are you trying to pull information out of your ass again?"

"I've never pulled information out of my ass."

"Atlantic City?"

Dean just smiled, holding in a laugh at the memory. "That was just you being lovable and gullible Sammy."

"Shut up."

"Dude, I still can't believe you believed me. I mean, come on, a haunted slot machine."

"You suck." Sam began, sliding out of the booth, throwing some money on the table.

"You're just a sore loser."

"This isn't a competition."

"Uh huh."

"Whatever, Dean. Who's this wonderful witness of yours?"

"His name's Mark Wislow. His best friend Laurie Kris went missing."

"And Mark saw it?"

"Better yet— the thing tried to get him, too."

6666666666666

Sam stood on the run down porch of what looked like a vacant house, the only clue to its occupation a dim light shinning from one of the upper rooms. The young hunter sighed— he could remember living in places just like this when he was younger. Their dad picked homes based on two criteria; price and privacy. And while those were the same two things most celebrities looked for, the Winchesters were in a much different pay bracket.

"Tell me again how the police managed to miss this guy." Sam asked as Dean knocked on the door.

"They just didn't talk to him. He was kind of hard to find to start with. All I got was he was the last one to see Laurie, they were in another room of the church together."

"Then how do you know whatever we're after tried to get him?"

"'Cause one of the other kids said he came running around the corner, going on about something coming out of the wall at them."

"What else did he say?"

"Nothing. They all kind of laughed, thought he was joking. So the kid left— the others didn't realize Laurie hadn't come back till morning."

"Nice friends." Sam mumbled, silencing when he heard footsteps approaching. The battered old door swung open a minute later.

Sam's eyes softened when he finally saw the young man. Mark was sixteen years old, but Sam would have guessed younger had he not read the kid's bio. He looked small, there was no other way to describe it, like the kid was trying to hide away from the world. His shoulders were slightly slumped, his face haunted and pale— and Sam wasn't sure if the boy's current condition was a result of what he'd witnessed or something more.

"Hello," Sam began, not wanting to scare the skittish boy away, "are you Mark Wislow?"

"Yeah, who're you?"

"We're detectives."

"What're you doing here?"

"We came to speak with you about Laurie Kris. I understand you were with her the nigh she vanished."

"Yeah," Mark began, shifting a bit. "me and about six other people. They already talked to the cops."

"Well, we wanna talk to you now. We're looking into some of the disappearances. I'm sure Laurie's family will be grateful for any information on her disappearance."

"If they even notice she's gone," Mark mumbled beneath his breath.

"Excuse me?" Dean cut in, his sharp voice making the boy look up so fast Sam was sure the kid had given himself whiplash. "You may not care she's gone, but others do."

"Don't take that condescending tone with me, Mister." Mark began, his eyes flashing with a fire Sam didn't think the kid could possess. "I'm the only one that even knew she was missing at first, I'm the only one that even cared. Hell, we took a train to another state when we were twelve and no one even noticed we were gone. So don't tell me I don't care."

"I'm sorry." Sam broke in, moving between his brother and the angry teen. Sam knew Mark was speaking out of emotion, out of loss, but he still didn't trust Dean not to hit the mouthy kid. "We didn't mean it that way."

"The other kids." Dean began after a few moments, his face unreadable. "They told us you saw something that night."

"I told them I couldn't find Laurie." Mark stated, though his eyes and stance gave him away.

"Mark, we really need to know what happened."

"Laurie said she saw something cool in the back room. We always liked old buildings, secret passageways, stuff like that. She said she found a hidden door or something." Mark stopped, taking a long breath. Sam couldn't help but feel for the kid— it was painfully obvious the teen had lost way more than just his best friend.

"She went in first, she was always kind of a dare devil. I was only a few feet behind—." Here Mark paused, fear running through his amber eyes as the memories of that night came rushing back to him. He'd seen something, of that Sam was positive, he just didn't know if the kid would be forthcoming with that information.

"She was just gone." Mark began a moment later, Sam sighing in frustration. "I never saw her again."

"Alright, Mark, thank you for your time." Sam nodded, knowing he wasn't going to get anything else from the kid.

"It's weird, you know." Mark continued to talk, stopping both brothers in their tracks. "I knew her most of my life— she was all I really had. I thought she'd always be there, and then, one day, she was just gone. I don't even know how to describe it."

"Like a piece of the earth is missing." Dean's voice startled Sam, the young hunter turning toward his brother. "Like there's a big hole were the light used to be."

"Yeah, exactly."

"You're not the only person in the world to lose someone important, Mark. Any information you have can help us."

Mark looked like he was gonna spill, looked like he was gonna let them know just what they were up against. But, a moment later, he closed the door slowly, indicating the end of their conversation.

"Well," Dean began, making his way down the battered porch steps, "that went well."

"What did you expect, Dean, the kid lost his best friend."

"I expected a little cooperation. If I lost my best friend I'd be doing more about it than feeling sorry for myself. Especially if I saw the bastard that hurt her."

Sam heard the underlying meaning of his brother's statement loud and clear. He knew Dean was talking about more than just Laurie, about more than Mark's tight lipped stance on the subject. On more than one occasion Dean had seen Kerri hurt, watched as his long time friend was used as a pawn against him. And, while Dean had done everything in his power to keep the redhead safe— there was only so much Dean could do. No matter what his big brother said or did Sam knew Dean was only human— something Dean himself seemed to forgot.

Sam let his thoughts wander as he followed his brother to the car. Kerri wasn't the only person weighing on the young man's mind. Ever since the Roadhouse Sam hadn't been able to get Evelyn out of his thoughts. He knew what it was like to be one of the psychic children, had seen what had happened to the others. He could only imagine what the Demon did to Ev. Sam he been studying the Yellow Eyed Demon, learning everything he could about others like him, about what was really going on. But, time and time again, he hit a wall.

As far as Sam could tell, all the special kids flamed out early, many dying within a year of their power's initial appearance. If this was all part of some great plan, then the Demon had screwed up royally. The only bit of information he'd been able to find was that Evelyn Harrison was the exception to the rule. She was older than the rest by a few months, older than Sam by six months, and as far as he could tell, the only 'chosen' child to be born in 1982.

At that thought, something else floated through Sam's overloaded mind— loneliness. Evelyn was the epitome of it. From what he'd managed to get out of Kerri, Evelyn had gone on a downward spiral after he and Dean left all those years ago. It was impossible for Sam to believe, and for months he was sure Kerri was blowing things out of proportion— until the day he saw Ev at the Roadhouse. For reasons he couldn't explain, he didn't think it was the Trickster playing jokes. Evelyn was just different that day, something less than human, but still more than an illusion.

That incident has sent Sam's mind racing, the young hunter thinking back to his childhood for the first time in a very long time. And, it was only then that he understood just why Evelyn had fallen apart so completely. She didn't play with other kids, didn't socialize outside her own family. Yes she was always full of life, causing mischief on a scale Dean couldn't rival, but it was always around the house, always in the company of her sister. And Sam knew why. Evelyn had learned the truth about what was in the dark at a very young age, and it had followed her the rest of her short life.

It wasn't that Evelyn was alone with the knowledge, they all knew what their fathers did, the young girl just let if effect her more than anyone else. Either that, or she never learned to deal with the truth properly. Everyone had always gone out of their way to shield Evelyn, treating her like some kind of princess, locked away in a tower far out of everyone's reach. They protected her, sheltered her, hid her, and in hindsight, it was their overprotectiveness that had eventually killed her.

Sam had learned to hunt, had faced what was on the other side of the shadows. Kerri had been trained since she was a toddler, all her father's research locked in her mind, against her will. And Dean, Dean was thrown into it, going from a four year old to an adult in one harrowing night. Evelyn though, she was kept away from it all, and as a result, she'd never learned to deal with the alienation it caused.

Sam's mind drifted even further back, back to a night he wished he could forget. He'd seen the real Evelyn when the watcher had attacked, had seen terror and loneliness reflected in her seven year old eyes. She was stronger than any of them had ever given her credit for— but hindsight is twenty twenty. For maybe the hundredth time since returning to Valley, Sam wanted to know what went on in those ten years between the earth demon and Evelyn's death. He wanted to know what she'd become, what she'd done, how she lived. But he couldn't bring himself to ask Kerri such personal questions. After all, Evelyn was her little sister, and Sam knew the young girl's death had devastated the redhead, and he didn't want to bring up the horrors of her troubled past. No, this was something he was going to have to figure out on his own.

"You gonna get in the car, or just stand there admiring its beauty?" Dean's voice brought Sam back to the present, the young hunter realizing he was leaning against the car, staring off into space.

"Huh? Yeah," he mumbled, pulling open the passenger door.

"You ok?"

"I'm fine."

"Sure you are," Dean began, starting the engine. "you normally stare off blankly."

"I wasn't staring blankly I was thinking."

"About what?"

"The hunt."

"Yeah right. Spill, Sam, you've been like a zombie for weeks now."

"Dean—."

"Don't, Dean, me with that whiny voice."

"My voice is not whiny."

"Yeah, says you. Look, Sam, if this has something to do with the visions I need to know."

"I haven't been having visions."

"Alright, nightmares."

"The nightmares are just that, nightmares. We've got more important things to focus on now, Dean. This thing, whatever it is, is gonna strike in the next day, we gotta figure out what we're up against."

Dean sat silent for a few minutes, obviously decided if he was gonna let Sam weasel his way out of the conversation. "Whatever, Sam. We could just keep anyone from going in."

"And when has that tactic actually worked?"

"Spoil sport. What's our next step then?"

"Library."

"That's not gonna help, Sam."

"Well then let me see that report you got about Mark. Maybe there's something you missed."

"You gonna find it with your super geek senses?"

"Just, stop being an ass and give me the papers."

"There're in the glove box." Dean grumbled, turning up the music as Sam searched the glove box.

The younger man was happy Dean had dropped his line of questioning, but he knew the reprieve wouldn't last long. Sam just hoped they finished this hunt and had the chance to move onto something knew before that happened. The younger Winchester couldn't shake the feeling that his nightmares and Dean's sullenness had something to do with the current hunt. And he knew that 'something' was never a good thing.


	3. Chapter 3

_two-fer. hello everyone. thank you all once again for the great reviews, they really make my day :). i got a chapter up of 'door in the dark' and had one ready for 'afterglow' too, so i thought, hey, why not post both. lol. as always, enjoy and let me know what you think. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 3

Dean kept glancing at Sam as he drove, willing the younger man to tell him what was going on. But, much to his dismay, being an awesome big brother didn't seem to come with that particular power. So, he was just gonna have to get Sammy to spill his guts the old fashion way.

"So, you think these dreams might be Laurie telling you where she is?"

"No," Sam answered, not looking up from the papers on his lap.

"You said yourself that the dreams may be tied to the hunt."

"When?"

"Last night. After the nightmare."

"Huh," Sam shrugged, tuning out his brother.

"Come on, Sam, throw me a bone here."

"I'm busy, Dean," Sam began, finally looking up, "and it's a moot point anyway."

"Why's that?"

"It just is."

"You know, you get moodier and moodier with each passing day."

"Look, Dean, let's just get to the church and check things out before tomorrow night."

"And you're positive this thing won't strike till tomorrow night?" Dean asked, eyeing his watch. It was already a little after ten p.m and Dean could feel his unease growing with each passing minute. He couldn't help but feel his brother was being targeted by whatever they were hunting. He was dreaming about a girl, lost and alone, apparently forgotten by the people that were supposed to love her— a girl a lot like Laurie Kris.

The supernatural was attracted to his brother, it was the simple truth, and Dean would be damned if he watched someone else he cared about get hurt. He still couldn't get the image of Kerri laying in the hospital bed out of his head— and it brought up memories of the Watcher all over again. It was the same image, coming to him from both the past and the present. Every time he closed his eyes his saw the normally vibrant girl laying still and silent, bruises marring her milky skin. It was an image he wished he could erase from his mind forever— even though he knew that would never be possible.

"Yes, Dean, everyone went missing from the church the night of June 11th. Tomorrow night."

"Alright, we're about forty minutes out. Just, look for any anomalies, I really don't wanna get caught by surprise."

The rest of the drive to the church was silent, the Impala's engine the only sound other than the rustling of papers. Dean's unease grew with each mile they drove, his watch counting down to midnight. He couldn't help the feeling they'd missed something, and that thought sent his heart racing. It wasn't the normal adrenaline he had before a hunt, it was something else. It was a feeling he couldn't shake, a thought growing in his mind as he sat in silence. The past several hunts had turned bad, and fast— and Dean was worried this one would be the same.

Since coming back to Valley, things had been difficult. Hell, he only returned because the hunt for a spirit had gone beyond wrong, almost ending his life. And then, things had spiraled from there. They'd used Kerri as bait against a twisted, immortal art dealer, and she'd nearly died in Dean's arms. He and Sam had then gone on a 'simple salt and burn' only to come out with a psychic kid and the Yellow Eyed Demon's stunning reappearance. And then the Trickster. It was like fate was working against them, trying to break them apart. But still, despite it all, Dean had continued to return to his friend's home.

Dean's eyes drifted to his brother for a moment, Sam still studying the papers on his lap. Things had been hard long before returning to Valley, Dean just chose to see through all the trauma of the last few years. Sam had been able to accomplish something Dean himself never could— a life. Sam had Jessica, had a future, had something to look forward to. Dean, on the other hand, had nothing but the past. Everything Dean cherished, everything he fought for was behind him, beyond him, and nothing would ever change that.

His parents were gone, killed by the demon he'd been fighting all his life, the demon that ruled his existence— the same demon that killed Evelyn, Tom and Jessica. Even the Sam and Kerri of the present weren't the ones he was fighting for. Whenever he thought of his brother, he pictured the wide eyed boy that followed him everywhere, the kid that once brought him in for show and tell. But the Sam sitting beside him wasn't that little boy anymore. He was darker in a lot of ways, hardened by the life they were forced to live. And now, after the Yellow Eyed Demon's return, he was without a future.

And Kerri— she wasn't even close to the girl he'd been forced to walk away from over twelve years before hand. She was like a hollow shell of the girl he remembered, just going through the motions, resigned to her fate. She used to dream, used to fight. Hell, she didn't even draw anymore. She used to spend countless hours in either her studio or the basement, working on her artwork— and as Dean remembered, what she created had been beautiful. But, upon returning he learned the sad truth that Kerri rarely if ever drew the scenes he'd come to love as a child. She'd fallen into the world of hunters, and she no longer tried to climb her way back out.

"Earth to Dean."

Dean was snapped from his thoughts by Sam's voice, the older man surprised to see they were now parked in front of the old church. He really had to do something about the whole 'driving on auto pilot' thing. "Yeah, what?"

"You planning on hunting, or you just gonna wait here in the car?"

"You find anything useful, Smart ass?"

"Nope, same as before. But then, that's why we're here, to do re-con."

"I know why we're here, Sam."

"I'm just saying, you seemed a little spacy there."

"Bite me." Dean mumbled, climbing out of the car.

The place looked like every other hunted, creepy place he'd seen. The paint that remained was chipped and flaking, broken shutters swinging ominously in a light breeze. The front steps looked like they wouldn't be able to support a house cat let alone a full grown man, and the few old stained glass windows that hadn't been removed were broken and bent. All in all, it was a sad sight.

Dean followed his brother around the church's old cemetery, the headstones beyond the rusty and broken gate so faded and over grown that Dean knew it would be next to impossible to figure out the names once etched across the old marble surfaces. A sudden pang of sadness shot through Dean's heart, the sight before him humbling to say the least. They were lives, people there beneath the ground, people once cared for, loved— yet now, their names were beyond recognition, their accomplishments long since forgotten.

It was a solemn reminder of the passage of time, of what we will all eventually become. Time changes thing thought to be unchangeable, erases stories once told and remembered by all. Time takes things away from you, haunts you— and for Dean Winchester, time was the one thing he knew he'd never be able to fight.

The pair made their way up the broken down steps slowly, taking care not to fall through the rotten wood. The door of the church hung precariously from rusted hinges, boards nailed in front of it the only obstacle in their path. Dean shook his head as he pushed past Sam, earning a glare and gruff from the younger man. But he was going first, there would be no question. Sam had been suffering nightmares, and the fact that he fit the criteria of the other missing people was a fact Dean hadn't missed.

From what they'd been able to gather, those that went missing were loners, the kind of people that often stayed to themselves, blended in with the crowd. They were all alone, haunted by what they' lost, and Dean wasn't about to let Sam become a victim. The older man's breath caught as he made his way through the loose boards across the door, the chime on his watch signaling midnight as he entered the empty foyer.

The inside of the church looked just as forgotten and derelict as the outside, though now there were some rather large cobwebs and about a foot of dust to add to the allure. Dean sneezed, wiping his hand on Sam's jacket as the younger man stumbled through the doorway, duffel in hand.

"Thanks, Dean."

"No problem. This place is charming." Dean began, pushing a few cobwebs out of his way with the end of the shotgun.

He took in the interior of the church with mild interest. The foyer opened into the main chapel the pews still covered in cushions, a few molded hymnals and bibles resting atop them. To the right was an office, most likely that of the priest. To the left a set of bathrooms. Dean moved slowly into the chapel, noticing the many halls and rooms which branched off the large space. The church was huge, its true size not visible behind the trees and overgrowth that covered the exterior.

"I think we should split up." Sam began.

"I don't know, Sam."

"Dean, I already told you, this thing doesn't attack until tomorrow night."

"Well, midnight just passed, so technically, it's tonight."

"Whatever, Dean. We still have almost twenty four hours. We'll just take a quick look around, see what we see, and then head out."

"Fine." Dean huffed, knowing Sam was right. Besides, not everyone that entered the church vanished.

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Sam moved slowly and carefully into one of the back room, his shotgun at the ready. He didn't think anything was there, but he still didn't want to take any chances. He and Dean had split up about an hour earlier, Dean taking the south side of the building while he took the north. The church was bigger than he had expected, the place full of over two dozen small rooms and halls. It looked like the place had seen multiple additions and extensions, each new phase failing to take the building's original layout into account, leaving them with nothing short of a maze.

Sam moved through the room, sweeping his flashlight around the space in practiced, deliberate movements. So far, nothing out of the ordinary had come up in his search, he just hoped Dean was having better luck. They needed to figure out what was going on that night, or be forced to wait another year. But, above all else, he couldn't risk the reality of another person vanishing. Local teens had made the place famous over the last few years, groups of them daring each other to spend the night within the rundown walls. And, while Sam and Dean could try and stop people from getting in, the sad reality was that, in a place this big, people could always sneak by.

Deciding the room was clean, Sam moved to a doorway at the far end, sighing when he found a small hall instead of a room. He was getting sick and tired of the building. For about the fifth time that night, Sam wished they had a third person working with them. But Bobby was busy on a hunt back east and, though Kerri was only one state away, both he and Dean had decided to let the girl rest. She'd been through too much already— besides, she wasn't a hunter to begin with.

Sam looked down at his watch, the chime indicating it was now one a.m. He rubbed his tired face, pulling out his cellphone once again, though he already knew what he'd find. His phone had no bars at all, which had the young hunter wary to say the least— he'd had full reception before entering the church. Something was up, he could feel it in his bones, and Sam knew he needed to get back to his brother.

Just as he turned, though, he heard a creaking at the end of the hall, a door slamming closed a moment later. Something was down there. Sam looked back over his shoulder one last time, the chapel visible through the door on the far side of the room. He knew he should get Dean, knew he shouldn't investigate alone, but he didn't know how long it would take to find his brother in the maze of a building. Taking a deep breath Sam made his decision, turning toward the hallway before him, and away from Dean.

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Dean cursed, entering a large, seemingly forgotten room at the back of the church. If he had to guess, he'd say it was the original chapel, though the room looked as though it had fallen into disrepair long before the church itself was abandoned. The space was covered in old, intricately carved wood paneling, an old organ covering one wall, the cobwebs blanketing it giving the instrument a very "haunted mansion" feel. Dean swept his flashlight back and forth across the room, the hairs on the back on his neck standing on end. Something was there, he could feel it.

He pulled out his cellphone, his heart sinking when he saw the no signal sign flashing. As the seconds ticked by, the whole re-con thing was turning into a dumber and dumber idea. It was the 11th of June and from what Dean could see and sense, whatever they were hunting didn't seem to care that it was one a.m instead of ten p.m.

Just as he turned to go back to Sam, Dean heard a door creaking from somewhere in the room. He turned at the sound, shining the light around the large space, his breath quickening when he saw one of the panels slide open, revealing a hidden hall. Dean gripped his shotgun tighter, making his way to the secret passage, his earlier interview with Mark coming back to him. Laurie said she'd found a hidden room, and Dean knew there was no such thing as coincidences.

Dean's thoughts turned to Sam briefly, the older man knowing he should get his brother before going into a secret space people seemed to disappear from. But, if this was what they were hunting and not just the wind, then Dean didn't want Sam anywhere near it. This thing was targeting his brother, and Dean wasn't about to hand Sam to it on a silver platter.

Decision made, Dean took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before stepping through the hidden door.

666666666666

Sam tried to keep his breathing calm as he made his way down the long and narrow hall, his flashlight cutting a dim path through the all encompassing darkness. His eyes were still on the door at the end of the hall. It hadn't moved since it had initially opened, but he knew something could still be down there. Slowly and carefully Sam pushed the door fully open, shining the light into room before entering. Seeing nothing, he moved into the small space taking in the sparsely furnished room.

It looked like an old study, two worn leather chairs adorning one wall while a dust covered piano occupied another. Sam moved slowly toward the piano, noticing a strip on the top was free of dust, almost as though something had cut a swath down the middle of the instrument. He moved the flashlight down the carved wood of the piano, the wood paneled wall behind it reflecting the dim light of the flashlight. A suddenly, a set of eyes materialized out of the darkness, Sam falling back against the molten carpet when a large tabby cat jumped at him.

Sam had to laugh, watching the animal as it ran from the room. Satisfied there was nothing on his side of the church, Sam picked himself up, making his way back to the chapel. He was surprised Dean hadn't come looking for him yet— the older man had been more than a little paranoid about the whole hunt. But Sam couldn't really blame him, after all, the nightmares did seem ominously tied to the hunt. But then, Sam hadn't told his brother about Evelyn, hadn't voiced his growing theories about what was going on.

Besides, Dean was over protective on a good day, so after all that had happened, Sam was amazed Dean hadn't tied a leash to him. The younger man looked down at his watch when he entered the chapel, surprised to see it was now 1:45 am. Dean had had more than enough time to check over the south side of the church.

"Dean?" Sam called out, his heart rate suddenly increasing, a link between all the victims slowly forming in his mind. They thought the victims were loners— but, on further thought, something else came to the surface. The victims hadn't distanced themselves from society, society had forgotten about them, pushed them aside, left them behind.

"Dean!" Sam called out, running toward the south end of the church. The victims hadn't mirrored him, they'd mirrored Dean. Sam couldn't believe he'd missed it, couldn't believe he'd let Dean wander around alone. But then, he'd been so preoccupied with his dreams, his thoughts focused on the mysterious woman and nothing more. And now, Dean may be the one to suffer.

"Dean!"


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello everyone. once again, thank you all so much for the great reviews, they really make my day. sorry about the very long delay, real life has been beyond crazy. hope everyone enjoys, let me know what you think. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 4

Kerri Harrison sat cross legged on the old carpet, her back against the wall, blue eyes staring intently at the room ahead of her. It was her father's library. She could remember being a child, back when the room was like a sanctuary for her, like an oasis in her own home. She loved the large room, the smell of the old leather bound books, the soft sofas. Now though, the room reminded her of a prison. Every time she looked at the books, all she could see were the secrets they harbored, the atrocities they concealed. Many asked her how she could still research hunts, having not stepped in the room since her father's death, and while Kerri just smiled and said her own library was sufficient, she harbored a much darker secret.

She already knew every word of each tome, every city on each map. She knew it all, and she could never forget. Even as she sat there, the information flew through her mind, the torrents so common she no longer succumbed to them. Kerri sighed, it was that now familiar rush of images and sounds that first clued her in to her father's plans. The human mind can only retain so much information, and when that capacity was reached, the memories fought the real world for dominance.

It was shortly after Sam and Dean left when she had her first episode. She'd been sitting in the attic drawing and it had been terrifying to say the least. One minute she was sitting before an easel— the next she was on the floor, a crying Evelyn above her, calling out her name. And, thinking back on it now, that incident had been the final straw for her little sister, the Evelyn Kerri had known for twelve years vanishing shortly afterwards.

But, worst of all was her father's face when he found them at the hospital. He didn't looked shocked, didn't look afraid— no, he looked pensive, thoughtful, like watching an experiment. And shortly afterwards, Kerri learned that in all reality, it was exactly what he was doing. She had no doubt that deep down her father loved her— but she also knew she'd become an experiment to him at a very young age. He'd given her reason after reason, and while the redhead nodded and smiled and told her dad it was all ok, she knew in her heart life would never be ok again.

She was pulled from her thoughts by the deep growl of an approaching car, the engine roaring as the vehicle raced down the dirt road. Kerri smiled, she'd know the sound of the Impala anywhere. She pushed herself up off the floor. She didn't want the boys to find her there, lost in thought, sitting in front of her father's library. Sam and Dean hadn't reacted well to her revelation, and she didn't want to give them anything else to worry about. Their reintroduction into her life had been hard, the three of them up against more obstacles than she would have thought possible. But they were holding their own, finding a way to be friends again, and she didn't want to risk it for anything.

She made her way down to the kitchen, listening as the Impala's engine was shut off, the creak of a door opening floating in through the kitchen window as she entered. She paused before going into the basement, waiting for the creak of a second door, but it never came. Her heart began to race as she pulled open the basement door and was nearly run over by Sam, the much taller hunter barreling into her in his haste to get in the house.

"Sam?" Kerri asked, her hands going to his elbows as he gripped her shoulders.

"I lost him."

"What?" Kerri asked again, the statement not sinking in.

"I lost Dean." Sam's brown eyes were boring into her's, his expression so lost, so pained it almost made Kerri's knees buckle.

"How?" Kerri was stuck in one word answers, Sam's statement still catching her completely off guard. The young man in front of her looked like he was about to crumble, his expressive eyes red with lack of sleep.

"We were on a hunt. It's all my fault, Kerri."

The break in Sam's voice brought Kerri to her senses, the redhead leading Sam to the kitchen table. He needed to sit down before he fell down. She couldn't stop the images running through her head as she eased Sam down into a chair— a sense of dread growing as the seconds ticked by. The last time Dean went missing they'd nearly lost him, and had it not been for Michael and Annabel Dean would have disappeared into the darkness he tried so hard to fight.

Kerri squeezed Sam's shoulder, terrified by the tremors that had over taken his body. Even though Sam had still been a child when their families had their falling out, Kerri had always remembered him as strong. He would never let anything stand in his way, whether it was a bully, or the Watcher, Sam always held his own. So, to see him now, shaking and lost, was almost more than the redhead could take.

She left the younger hunter only long enough to grab a coffee and water for him— though she knew he needed much more. It was obvious that he hadn't eaten or slept in a few days— and that only meant Dean's disappearance hadn't been recent. The joy she felt when she heard the roar of the Impala was quickly being replaced by an overwhelming sense of dread. Whatever they were hunting had gotten Dean, and based on Sam's reaction, they were gonna have a hell of a time getting him back.

Sam gripped the mug with shaky hands, but didn't drink. And, after several minutes of silence Kerri had to prompt him to speak. "Sam, what were you hunting?"

Kerri was beginning to fear the younger man was going into shock, but a moment later he spoke. "We weren't one hundred percent sure. We were thinking spirit."

"How did Dean vanish?"

"We were doing recon. God, Kerri, he didn't wanna go." Sam confessed, pushing the heels of his hands into his eyes. "He didn't wanna go and I made him."

"This isn't your fault, Sam."

"I made him go, Kerri." Sam spoke again, punctuating each word.

Kerri took a deep breath, knowing now was not the time to snap at Sam. She needed to figure out what was going on and fast. Dean wasn't the kind of person to turn his back on a hunt, hell, the blonde was normally the first one to jump in, no matter what the situation. So, for Dean to want to hold back, Kerri knew it had to be something big— and she was pretty sure there was only one thing that could make the older man second guess his actions. Sam's safety.

"Why didn't Dean wanna go?"

"He was worried something would happen." Sam laughed, though there was no humor behind it.

"Sam, what exactly happened?"

"We were looking into some disappearances. It didn't happen every year, kind of hit or miss, but the past few years it'd been happening more and more often. We couldn't find much online, and we only had one witness that wouldn't talk. So— so I figured the next step was recon."

Sam paused, taking a deep breath, his trembling hands still clutching his coffee. "I said— Dean was worried about the date. Everyone went missing the night of June 11th, and we started on the 10th, but by the time we go there, it was after midnight. Dean kept asking if I was sure it was only the night of the 11th. I told him to stop worrying. I was wrong.

"The place was huge, so we split up. I went back to the chapel after I finished the sweep of my side. And he wasn't there. I tore the fucking place apart, Kerri."

Kerri opened her mouth, but quickly closed it, not knowing what to say. It wasn't anyone's fault, she knew that, but she could also see why Sam was blaming himself. He told Dean the hunt was safe, and it wasn't— plain and simple. But the younger man's current actions still didn't make sense. She knew Sam wouldn't leave Dean behind, not without a fight. The last time she'd found them separated, Dean had been taken by a spirit, and Sam had searched, high and low. The redhead knew Sam wasn't lying when he said he'd already ripped the old church apart.

"What happens to the victims?"

"We don't know. None of them have ever been found."

"Not even a trace?" Kerri was astonished. How does someone vanish off the face of the planet?

"Nothing. They're all just gone."

"We'll find him, Sam."

"How?" Sam asked, his soft brown eyes staring imploringly at her. "No one's ever been found before. Something's taking them to god knows where."

"How do you know something's taking them?" Kerri asked, trying to keep Sam's mind focused on the hunt instead of Dean's possible fate.

"The witness that wouldn't talk said something to his friends that night. He said something grabbed the girl he was with then went after him, but he wouldn't elaborate. We should never have split up, Kerri. I can't believe I let him go."

"Sam, you can't keep blaming yourself."

"Ker, he didn't wanna go 'cause he thought I fit the bill for the missing."

"Yeah, I figured as much."

"I thought I fit, too. That's why I said to separate."

"Huh? You wanted it to take you?"

"I thought maybe I could get an inside handle on it. I didn't think it would take either of us, but I thought it might show itself."

"Damn it, Sam. You're getting as reckless as Dean."

"You're one to talk Miss wanders off with strange art dealers."

"This isn't going to get us anywhere."

"I'm sorry, it's just— god I screwed this all up."

"Is something else going on?"

Kerri watched as Sam paused, the younger man obviously hiding something. But Sam was as tight lipped as his brother was headstrong, and she knew she's never be able to force the brunette to tell her what was really going on inside his head. No, she'd just have to wait for Sam to tell her in his own time.

"No," Sam began after a moment. "It's just, Dean's done so much for me, and I can never return the favor."

"What are you talking about, Sam? You've returned it tenfold."

"Yeah right."

"Sam."

"Don't, Kerri. Just don't." Sam pushed his coffee away, rubbing at his temples, his eyes scrunched in pain.

Kerri was on her feet in seconds, making her way around the table. She had no clue what was going on— one minute Sam was talking, the next he was rubbing his head like it was about to explode. "Sam?" Kerri began, her hand resting on the back of his neck.

Sam reached out for her, his hands coming to rest on her shoulders, eyes still closed. Kerri could feel her heart rate increasing when Sam leaned his head against her shoulder, his much larger frame crumpling into her arms. She tried to even out her breathing as she lowered Sam to the floor, knowing now was not the time to panic. She had no idea if it was a vision or something much worse. Dean had never talked about his brother's gifts, or curse as every seemed to think. Kerri herself wasn't at all certain which opinion was more accurate.

Kerri knew for a fact that each child had their abilities before the Yellow Eyed Demon came into the picture. Hell, it was those abilities that made him chose each child. So yes, in a way they were a curse, but they weren't something to be fought or hidden. They were a part of each of the special kids, something they were born with, which made it part of who they were, for better or for worse.

"Sam, please talk to me." Kerri couldn't help the panic rising inside her. Sam had yet to speak, yet to move. Her shoulders were throbbing beneath the young hunter's grip, but Kerri didn't shy away, at that moment she needed the comfort of his touch. She'd just been told Dean was missing, and then Sam had gone and nearly passed out in her arms. And, to add insult to injury, no more than a minute later Sam slumped over, the psychic falling unconscious.

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Sam was in the same dark room again, the small lamp dim against the bright sunlight that had been filtering through the kitchen windows at Kerri's house. The young hunter could remember speaking to Kerri, sitting at her kitchen table when his headache began— and that fact terrified him. No longer was he just having nightmares, now whatever was happening to him was taking over during the day as well. His thoughts briefly turned to Kerri, the poor girl was probably having a heart attack right now.

Sam made his way around the small room. The place wasn't as surreal as it was in his dreams, and while the familiar shadow of a woman was again standing by the window, Sam didn't feel drawn to it like he normally did. He still didn't think this was a vision, in fact, he was sure it wasn't. He seemed to be able to interact with the woman instead of watching from the sidelines helplessly.

The figure had yet to turn around or speak, and Sam knew he had to be the first to talk. He didn't know who the figure was or what she wanted, but Sam couldn't help but feel he was tied to her on a very deep level.

"What do you want?" Sam asked, but instead of hearing his voice echo around the room from a different plane, he heard it coming from him, as though he were speaking to a normal person in a normal room.

"None of us can be saved." The woman spoke softly, her voice too issuing from her own body. "Not in life and not in death."

"I don't believe that."

"I've watched them all fail. Watched as the world slipped away. I couldn't save them."

It was the most he'd heard the woman talk, and though her back was still to him, he could almost see the remorse in her eyes. She'd fought, and she'd lost. But Sam refused to let himself fall to the same fate. "Just 'cause you lost, it doesn't mean the rest of us will."

"I hope you're right, Sam." The figure turned at the statement, her pale eyes locking on Sam. But, instead of being met by the rush of flame and fire he'd felt last time, now he was met with nothing more than the sad eyes of Evelyn Harrison.

He tried to speak again, tried to ask Evelyn why she was there, what was going on, but instead of speaking he felt himself take a deep breath. Gasping he opened his eyes wide, surprised to see a bright light filling the room. He was laying on the ground, the uneven wood floor of Kerri's kitchen cool against his aching body.

"You better have a damn good reason for passing out on me."

Sam turned to face the redhead when he heard her shaky voice, his dark eyes meeting her panicked blue ones. She was terrified, it was obvious, and even though it wasn't his fault, Sam felt guilt creep up. First his messed up intel got Dean abducted, and now he'd pulled Kerri into the middle of it once again.

"Sam?"

"I'm ok."

"Are you and your brother programed to say that or something?" Kerri sighed, and Sam could see the tension slowly leaving her body as she helped him to sit.

"Yeah. Winchester rule number five, we're always alright."

"You know, I'm still waiting for my copy of that rule book."

"It's in the mail."

"It's been in the mail since I was fourteen. Was that a vision?" Kerri asked, her hand still resting on Sam's shoulder.

"Yeah." Sam lied. He didn't wanna go into the fact that he was seeing Kerri's dead sister Evelyn.

"And?"

"And what?"

"What'd you see?"

"Nothing. It was all kind of blurry and dark."

"Do you think it has anything to do with the hunt?"

"No. Normally I only get the visions when Yellow Eyes is lurking." Sam realized only after he spoke that it was the wrong thing to say. Kerri tensed instantly, her eyes widening as she stared around the room. She'd had more encounters with the Demon than Sam had, hell, she'd had more encounter than almost anyone he knew. And while she was secretive about them, Sam knew each meeting had to be terrifying.

"I don't mean he's here, I mean it just has something to do with either the Demon or the other psychic kids." There, that wasn't a total lie— after all Evelyn was one of the psychic kids, too.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"What do we do about it?"

"Nothing. The only thing we're doing is finding my brother." It was all Sam could focus on, all he could think about. It had already been two days— and he refused to let his brother vanish into the darkness. The world needed Dean, Sam needed Dean, and he was going to get him back.


	5. Chapter 5

_wow, time got away from me. i had no idea how long it had been since i updated this. real life has been busier than i thought possible lately. sorry, sorry for the wait. once again, thank you all so so much for the great reviews!! enjoy and let me know what you think. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 5 

Pain, it was the first thing Dean was aware of. His entire body was one big ball of fire and pain. Every one of his muscles was burning and seizing from being held in one position too long. The young hunter blinked a few times, trying to bring the world around him into focus— but it was no use. He was trapped in an overwhelming darkness, not even the slightest hint of light finding its way to him. Dean searched his clouded memory, but he came up blank, all he could remember was walking into the abandoned church with Sam. Sam— his brother's name brought Dean's mind into sharp focus. The younger man's information had been wrong, and whatever they were hunting had attacked regardless of its regular schedule.

Dean cried out in pain when me moved to stand, his shoulders pulling back as the rest of his body lurched forward. "Son of a bitch." Dean bit out through halting breaths as he fought off the wave of pain and nausea that was threatening to overtake him. He cursed again when he twisted his wrists, realizing they were being held behind his back by a set of handcuffs. He pressed back, pushing all his weight against the pipe behind him, testing its strength. But, much to his dismay, the large pipe didn't even bend, let alone break away.

"Sam?" Dean called out, even though he knew there was a pretty good chance his brother couldn't hear him. After all, what kind of bad guy or whatever they were after be if he left his victims in plain sight.

Dean thought briefly of his cell phone, but remembered that, not only was the phone currently out of reach, it didn't have a signal to start with either. He closed his eyes, resting his head against the cool bar behind him as he tried to think— he was beyond screwed. He had no idea how long he'd been out for, or if the same fate had befallen Sam. He was still amazed the thing had gone for him in the first place. Sam seemed more the bad guy's type, a thought that didn't make Dean feel any more confident in his current situation. He hated being alone, hated being in silence. Because, in the lonely silence was when his own thoughts and emotions came thundering to the surface.

Dean took a deep breath, feeling his old insecurities fighting their way to the surface once more. He had to focus, had to find a way out of wherever he was so he could make sure Sam was ok, and then kick his ass for being wrong. He took another long breath before pulling his knees up to his chest, pushing himself slowly up the pole behind him, despite the tendrils of pain shooting down his spine. Dean didn't really know what standing would accomplish, he only hoped the piece of metal he was tied to was shorter than he was. Once he was fulling standing though, he realized what he'd already known from the start. Not only did the pipe go all the way to the ceiling, the ceiling was a whole lot lower than Dean originally thought.

Dean felt around the area as best he could, his eyes adjusting slightly to the darkness. It wasn't much, but it was better than he had a few moments before. He still couldn't see anything but dark shadows, but at least now he'd be able to see a shadow coming to get him. Dean's heartbeat picked up at the thought— he was completely defenseless and he had no idea where he was. Dean slid back down to the ground, his head throbbing. He was in trouble and he just hoped Sam was ok. No one knew where they were, which wasn't all that unusual for them, though his current situation had Dean rethinking that hunting strategy.

Dean's mind wandered as he sat in the dark, his worries growing with each racing beat of his heart. While every brotherly instinct he had told him he had to find Sam and make sure he was ok, Dean's more logical side was beginning to show through— either that, or his usually concealed fears were growing. From everything they had managed to find, which wasn't much, the people all went missing from right around the same area. And since Sam was on the opposite side of the building, logically he should be fine. But then, logically they should have had another twenty hours to search before worrying about becoming the damsel in distress.

Dean pulled against his restraints again, cursing when the metal around his wrists refused to give. He slid down a little further, his hands coming into contact with the cold concrete floor beneath him. There had to be something there he could use as a lock pick, or saw. Hell, at that point he'd take anything as long as it got the cuffs off his wrists. But, despite his best efforts, Dean came up empty.

"Damn it." Dean sighed, pressing the back of his head against the pole. He closed his eyes, knowing he had to keep himself calm. Someone would find him. _Who?_ Dean's mind shot back at him, the only person who knew what they were up to was Sam, and he could very well be in the same spot as Dean. The blonde wanted to kick himself, he'd been a few seconds away from calling Bobby the day before, and now this.

And then there was Kerri. Dean let his mind rest on the spitfire redhead, the mere thought of her somehow calming. She was the only person he'd ever known that could calm him down. Sure, Sam tried, and while the younger man did have a talent for talking Dean down from murderous to irate, Kerri could sooth his soul. She as just comforting, and not because she was a girl. She was just Kerri, and Dean had no other way to describe it. The pair had been through a lot in their lives, had grown up together, had found their way through the world of hunters together— had raised younger siblings together. Kerri was the one Dean leaned on, the one he turned to, and someone he hadn't had in a very long time.

While Dean still found great comfort in Kerri's presence a little bit of the warmth he used to know was gone, replaced by a dark silence. Replaced by solitude. It all came back to solitude, to being alone. No matter what path Dean chose, no matter what decisions he made, he always ended up the same— alone. There was no way around it, no saving himself from the inevitable. He was going to be alone, he was going to die alone.

Dean shook his head, trying to silence his raging thoughts, but his mind just kept churning, the unending darkness and silence around him feeding his fears. He could only sit their tied to the pole for so long before he would be in serious trouble. Well, serious-er trouble.

"Sam!" Dean called out, pulling again at the restraints, though he knew it would do no good.

Dean took another deep breath, new images growing in his mind as he thought about his brother. He was no longer in his dark prison, no, now his mind was throwing him into a hell he'd lived over a decade before. He was back in Valley, back on that sun-drenched summer day, back when he had almost lost Sam forever. It was the day his life had changed. It had started out so normal, and had someone told him that by that evening his life would be in pieces, Dean would have protested the lie. But reality and fate screwed him over before, and in hindsight, Dean really should have seen it coming.

Nothing in his life was ever constant, was ever really his. Everything was taken away, forcefully left behind. He was a soldier, a hunter, he didn't have the luxury of being friend, brother or son. He always had to be ready to fight, ready to pick up and leave— ready to sacrifice all for a fleeting shot at normal. It was a catch twenty-two, though Dean always chose to ignore that fact. He fought for the people he loved, fought to stay with them, to never be left alone— but it was the very act of fighting that was forcing him away from everyone in his life.

It was the same that day. He could feel himself being pulled in a hundred different directions at once, even at the age of sixteen. Every choice he made was wrong, everyone he tried to please was let down by his actions. He tried, he really tried, but too many people had too many expectations for him. He was just one person, just Dean, but no one ever seemed able to accept that. Well, almost no one.

That day had started out like many had, with arguing. He'd received a call from his father saying they were on their way home, and that their bags should be packed by the time he got there. He can still remember the anger he'd heard in his father's voice— yes Tom and John fought, a lot, but Dean could tell that day something big was going on. And he'd been right on the money. And after Sam was attacked, the falling out between John Winchester and Tom Harrison had been completed. Hell, they didn't even say anything to the Harrisons after Sam had been dug up. And, thinking back on it now, Kerri hadn't even been there.

Dean had never given that fact much thought until a few weeks ago. Truthfully, he hadn't even noticed Kerri was absent during that long ago afternoon. But Kerri's revelation at the Roadhouse changed everything. Dean didn't remember much from that summer day. He remembered the fight, remembered his father's finalizing words, and he remembered the earth demon. He remembered Sam's scream, remembered watching his brother running from the creature in terror— and he remembered watching helplessly while his twelve year old brother was drug beneath the earth by the demon.

And then, he'd dug. Dean couldn't remembered anything but the digging. In his mind, he was alone, trapped between two worlds frantically trying to save his little brother. His father wasn't there, Tom wasn't there, no one was there but him, his hands buried beneath the dirt, fighting their way through the barrier that separated him from his brother. At the time, he'd never given any thought as to why the earth demon gave up the fight, but now, well now he knew the truth. It had been because of Kerri and an accident.

Dean could feel himself beginning to shake, his palms sweating as the darkness around him began to close in. He didn't realize how close he'd been to losing Sam forever. Kerri knocked a bracelet off a shelf while searching for something to help. It had been that close, a mere brush of a sleeve that had saved Sam from an unimaginable fate. But it hadn't saved Dean from being alone, because, a short eight years later, Sam had left for school. It was just another reminder that, no matter how hard he fought, Dean would always lose.

"Hello!" Dean called out, hoping someone, anyone was within ear shot. Hell, at this point he'd welcome a verbal sparring match with the bad guy. Anything to keep him from having to be alone in the overwhelming darkness.

"Sam!" Dean yelled out, his throat straining with each call. He was getting thirsty. Wherever he was was dusty, and he could feel the musty air seeping into him, drying out his mouth and throat. "Hello! Sam! Anybody!"

Dean bowed his head, trying to get a grip before he went into a total tailspin. He had to stay level headed, had to keep his cool. Sure, he was alone with no real method of escape and only a hope that rescue was on the way. And sure, he was thirsty, and hungry, but he had what, three days before that really became a problem. Surely Sam would find him before then. Surely someone would find him.

Dean could feel a heavy weight settling down on his soul. He had days before he was really screwed, he wouldn't be there for days. People didn't just vanish into thin air, everyone could be found. The world was too small to actually disappear.

_'Tell that to all the victims you read about.'_ Dean thought bitterly, his fear rising with each thought that drifted through his mind. Not a single person had ever been found after they'd gone missing in the church. Not even a trace. They were just gone forever— alone, forgotten, left behind.

"Sammy! Hello! Anybody! Sammy, I'm here." Dean shouted, his booted foot coming into contact with a wall in front of him.

Dean slid down as far as his aching arms would allow, kicking hard against the brick wall in front of him, hoping he was making enough noise to be heard.

"Hello! I'm here!" Dean didn't know how long he yelled for, hell, he didn't even know how long he'd been trapped for. But, if he had to guess, he'd say he was yelling for hours. He could feel exhaustion pulling at him, his burning throat protesting ever shout. Where was Sam? His brother had a chance to search the whole church at that point, and Dean knew he was making enough noise to be heard.

And, despite all his best efforts, another thought attacked Dean's exhausted mind. Maybe Sam had left. Dean tried to tell himself his brother was still looking, or maybe he too had been taken by their supposed prey. But still, that overwhelming sense of solitude invaded. Everyone had left Dean behind, and they rarely if ever returned.

"Sammy?" Dean breathed, finally giving in to his exhaustion. And, in the lonely darkness that had become his prison, Dean drifted off into a fitful sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

_hello everyone. thank you all once again for the great reviews, they make my day. sorry about the little wait, work has been crazier than ever, 67 hours in one week / this chapter is longer than the other to make up for it ;) as always, enjoy and let me know what you think. _

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 6

Sam was pacing. He couldn't help it. It had been two days since Dean had vanished and in the time he'd been at Kerri's house Sam hadn't figured out anything new. He wanted to scream, or better yet punch something. People didn't just vanish, it wasn't possible in this day and age. Dean had to be somewhere. Sam still couldn't believe he'd lost him. Dean had always been there for him, sacrificed for him and Sam went and let Dean get taken. Because, no matter what anyone else said, Sam knew this was his fault.

He'd told Dean they were safe, hell he'd even pushed his reluctant brother through the boarded up door. He was beyond positive they wouldn't be attacked— and he was beyond wrong. And now Dean was facing the same fate countless others had. Sam knew none of the others were alive. Missing for a month was one thing, but gone without a trace for a whole year was something else entirely. The bad guys didn't keep their prey that long, and Sam knew his brother's time was quickly running out.

"Anything?" Sam began, turning toward Kerri.

The redhead was sitting cross legged on the old sofa in the small den behind the kitchen, a laptop open on the coffee table in front of her, papers scattered about. She looked up at Sam momentarily before turning back to her search. "Not since two minutes ago when you asked."

Sam scrubbed his face, resuming his pacing. He tried to help with the research, but his nervous energy was making it impossible for him to sit still. Everything in his mind was just one big mess, the words on the papers before him running together in a blurry mix. The only thing he could think about, the only thing he could focus on, was Dean.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry, Sam."

Sam knew Kerri was talking about more than just his current pacing and questioning. The older girl had repeatedly tried to convince Sam this wasn't his fault, but the young hunter knew differently. He made Dean go, there was no way this wasn't his fault.

"So," Kerri began a moment later, obviously sensing Sam's decent into self-recrimination. "Why'd you guys think it was a spirit?"

"It just seemed to fit. I mean, if it was demons, we'd have seen the victim's body's being used. And any kind of monster would be pretty messy. We checked on vortex points and everything, too. Church came up clean."

"So process of elimination?"

"Basically."

"And you're sure Dean isn't in the church?"

"No, I'm not sure of anything. Ker, I tore that place apart for an entire day, I even searched the cemetery— looked for any fresh graves."

"Were there any other houses on site? Places for priests or nuns?"

"No. There were outlying building, but they burnt in a huge fire about a hundred years ago. They only rebuilt the church. And yes, I checked the foundations of the older buildings. I checked everywhere."

"We'll find him, Sam. He's somewhere."

"Yeah, I'm beginning to doubt that."

"Everyone has to be somewhere, Sam. People don't just vanish."

"Just because they're somewhere doesn't mean we can find them. I've had plenty of people disappear in my life."

"Those were people that were trying to hide. I'm sure wherever Dean is, he's making plenty of noise."

"I know." Sam breathed, sitting on the sofa beside Kerri. He needed to focus, he couldn't let his emotions get the better of him. "There's something I'm missing but I can't figure it out."

"Who's the first person that went missing and when?" Kerri asked, pulling her computer to her lap.

"Uh, Jeremiah Rosedale. He was a carpenter. He went in to fix up the church and never came back out."

"And that was the night of June 11th?"

"Yeah. The church had apparently been closed for a while at that point and the community took interest in it as an historical site. I think they were gonna fix it up for tours. But after Jeremiah vanished, that all changed."

"What year was that?"

"Uh, the 40s I think."

"No one before that?"

"Nope. But no one was in the church before that, it was sealed closed."

"Why?"

"I don't know, we just assumed it was condemned."

"Nothing else happened that was strange?"

"Not that we could find. But the records only went back so far. Apparently, the town records were kept on the church grounds."

"The fire."

"Yup. The fire was in 1914, so all records before that are gone."

"Great."

"You don't know anything?" Sam ventured, a sudden unease growing in the pit of his stomach.

"That's why I'm asking you questions." Kerri answered back, eyeing Sam like he was crazy. "It'd be kind of redundant to ask questions I already knew the answers to."

"Yeah, I know. It's just."

"Just what?"

"Well, you said your dad put all sorts of information in your mind. I just thought."

"That you could type in a search and get an answer?"

"No, not like that. I mean—." Sam stuttered, not wanting to offend Kerri. It was the first time he'd actually talked to Kerri about what her father had done. Sam still didn't understand it, and that just seemed to make him all the more curios. But the last thing he wanted to do was make Kerri feel like even more of a freak. However, judging by the smirk on her face, she wasn't offended.

"Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. I mean, once I figure out what's going on I'll never forget it, but I have to actually learn the information first."

"Oh. And you can fit more in your head? I mean, doesn't it reach capacity at some point?"

"Believe me, I've been through all that. Capacity is a major problem, but I think I've got it under control."

"Think?" Sam asked, the true reality of what Kerri was facing suddenly dawning on him. She downplayed it so much that he hadn't really thought about the consequences of manipulating someone's mind.

"It's not an exact science, Sam. Let's just say I'm good at compartmentalizing. Right now we need to focus on Dean."

Sam knew there was more to the issue than Kerri was letting on, but he also knew finding Dean was their priority. They had time to solve Kerri's problem, Dean on the other had, was racing the clock.

"Is that why you came here?" Kerri asked, looking up from the computer.

"It was one of the reasons. I mean, you found him last time."

"Technically, I didn't. But I'll let that slide." Kerri smiled, turning back to her laptop.

Sam rifled through a few papers, though he knew the information they needed wasn't there. Something had happened prior to 1914, and it was now lost to history. And Sam was afraid his brother would be lost right along with that information.

"Have you found any stories about disgruntled or secluded people?" Sam asked a few minutes later, his leg bouncing enough to shake the whole sofa.

"Please stop that, and no. Why?"

"Well, the ghost's got an M.O. People like Dean."

"Annoying?"

Sam shot her a look. "Alone."

"Dean's not alone."

"Maybe not physically. I thought the M.O was people that had lost a loved one. Someone that couldn't move on. But now, I'm not so sure."

"What're you talking about?"

"Dean can't handle being alone, Kerri, it terrifies him. But, he always kind of ends up that way."

"Are you talking about people that are left behind?"

"People that think they've been forgotten, yeah."

"So Dean's screwed up psyche got him ghost-napped?"

"He does get overlooked at times."

"Not by the people that really matter."

Sam smiled at Kerri's statement, though he knew it was only a half-truth. Kerri was referring to the two of them, but Sam knew that, while Kerri had never once given up on Dean, he himself had turned his back on his brother. He'd just been going to school, and he'd been angry at his father, not Dean, but that didn't stop him from shutting out his brother for two whole years. "Try and get Dean to believe that."

"So the ghost goes for people with low self-esteem?"

"The kid we interviewed said he and his friend took a train to another state and no one even realized they were gone. It's not that people don't care—."

"The ghost just goes after people that are easily over-looked."

"Yeah. So—."

"So, if the ghost was a person like that, there's a chance no one realized he was gone."

"Bingo." Sam sighed, a heavy weight settling on his heart.

"God, nothing can ever be easy." Kerri began, pushing herself to her feet.

"Where're you going?"

"There's a national registry of churches about an hour from here. It might have records of the church before the fire."

"What if it wasn't a clergyman?" Sam asked, knowing the church registry wasn't much more than a shot in the dark.

"We'll find him, Sam. I promise."

Sam knew Kerri would fight through hell and high water to keep her promise, but he also knew reality played an undesirable role in their lives. Kerri and Dean always promised things would be ok, would always tell him they could fix things, and when he was a child, Sam had believed that wholeheartedly. But time changed him, dulled the rose-colored hue Dean and Kerri had tried so hard to create. Life rarely worked out right just because someone made a promise. No, if Sam learned one thing over his short life it was that promises were made to be broken.

Evelyn's words made their way slowly to Sam's ears— _'None of us can be saved, not in life and not in death.'_

The words haunted Sam, because, even though he'd told Evelyn differently, he knew the statement was true. Sam had yet to save the people he loved, and he was beginning to think his life would be marked by nothing but death. There was no future for him, nothing to look forward to, to dream about. There was just death, loss and heartbreak. It was a never ending cycle, and all Sam wanted to do was break it. He could save perfect strangers, but he wasn't able to save his own loved ones.

Sam watched Kerri leave the room, his mind miles away. Dean and Kerri were all he had left in the world, his only family— he needed to save them. He could feel the weight of the world pressing down on his already burdened shoulders. Whatever Tom had done to Kerri was far more dire than the redhead let on, and Sam knew that, even if he saved Dean this time, his older brother would always be in the line of fire.

The old house creaked and moaned around him, almost as though space and time were reading his thoughts. Life, it had once been all around him, promising and bright. The old house had once been full of life, full of joy, but now it was an empty reminder of what the future could have been. The future, for so long that had been all Sam thought about, all he cared about. Where would he be tomorrow, ten years from now? He'd once thought about children, and where he and Jessica would settle once school was over. Yes, ever since Sam could remember, he'd wished for tomorrow, and in the process, he'd missed the present.

And now, there was no future left. Evelyn, Tom and John were dead, Kerri looked like a strong would could make her crumble and Dean was missing. And Sam suddenly understood his brother's fears. Being alone was like listening to a never ending echo— he knew what the past had held, remembered the dreams it had promised, but still he was surrounded by the fallout of reality. Everything he had, every memory he possessed was bathed in the afterglow of failure, the past nothing more than a fading light— and Sam didn't know how much more he could take.

"I told you we couldn't be saved."

Sam spun at the voice, his heart rate increasing when he saw Evelyn behind him. She looked just as she had in his visions, or nightmares, he still wasn't entirely sure which was more accurate. He had to say, she'd grown into a beautiful woman— sad and obviously broken, but still beautiful. She had long dark hair, her pale eyes staring back at him like pools of deep water. Sam suddenly found himself wishing for those long ago days in Valley, wishing for childhood. When he was young, he couldn't wait to grow up, to get away from his family and hunting— and he was slowly beginning to realize just how much he'd missed back then.

"I told you before, I don't believe we're doomed." Sam tried to sound confident, but based on the small smile Evelyn gave him, he knew the girl had seen what was in his mind.

"I tried to save them." It was the same thing she'd been saying to him since the nightmares began.

"Save who?"

"All of them."

"Who is all of them?"

"All we have is tomorrow, today and yesterday are already being erased."

"I don't understand what you want. Why do you keep coming to me?"

"I couldn't save them, Sam."

"I get that. Who's them?"

"Sam?" Sam turned at the sound of Kerri's voice, realizing he'd been getting louder and louder as he spoke to the frustrating spirit of Evelyn. Even after her death she could still drive him crazy. "Who're you talking to?"

"No one." Sam began, turning back to where Evelyn had been standing, though he knew she was no longer there.

"Yeah, sure, just like you weren't talking anyone at the Roadhouse. It wasn't Evelyn, was it?"

"No, I told you before, I didn't see Evelyn at the Roadhouse, it was something the Trickster made." Sam lied. He had never meant to tell Kerri he'd seen her dead sister in the first place, but back then, he had truly believed it was the Trickster. But, ever since the nightmares started, he knew that wasn't true. Yes, the Trickster had put many, many images in their heads those few days but, miraculously, Evelyn had not been one of them.

Kerri just shot him another look before leaving the room again, shouting over her shoulder as she entered the kitchen. "We need to get a move on before the registry closes."

Sam just closed his eyes, praying for patients. He wanted to tell Kerri about Evelyn, he really did, but he knew he had to figure out exactly what was going on first. And Sam couldn't shake the feeling that the Yellow Eyed Demon was somehow involved.

66666666666

The Impala charged down the empty streets, the deep growl of the engine the only sound in the quickly growing twilight. It was just another thing Sam loved about Wyoming. It was the least populated state in the country and Sam had always loved the quiet solitude. It was a place where he could think, be left alone to collect himself. It was peaceful.

Sam looked over to Kerri, the redhead sitting indian style once again. "Are your legs stuck that way or something?"

"Huh, it's comfortable."

"No it's not."

"Maybe not if your legs are long as hell. Turn right at the next street."

Sam just shook his head, turning back to the road. They'd made the hour long drive in thirty eight in a half minutes, not that Sam was counting. But even with his bat out of hell driving he knew they still had precious little time to search the archive's extensive records. As if Winchester luck wasn't bad enough already, it was now Friday, the thirteenth strangely enough, and the archives would be closed over the weekend. And Sam knew Dean couldn't wait for normal business hours.

"Are we gonna have enough time to look through this whole place before they close up?" Sam asked nervously when they pulled up to the building. It was huge. But then, he thought, it had to be to house the clerical recorders from churches across the country.

"I already know where we need to go." Kerri answered, climbing from the car.

Sam stared at her retreating back, knowing exactly what she meant. She'd been there before, and she'd never forgotten what she'd learned within the archives. Once again, Sam found himself wondering what exactly was in Kerri's head, and how the entire process worked. Tom was wrong for subjecting his daughter to such extreme measures, Sam knew that, but still, he couldn't curb his curiosity. He shook his head, scanning the records as he followed Kerri through the building. This may be Dean's only chance, and if Tom's 'experiment' lead to them being able to save Dean, then Sam couldn't completely fault the guy.

The pair stopped in the back corner of the building, a librarian informing them they only had an hour and thirty minutes before the archives closed. Sam just smiled at the annoyingly attentive woman as Kerri pulled a number of heavy books off the shelves. The woman eyed Kerri again before speaking.

"Research again, Ms. Williams?"

"As always," Kerri smiled over her shoulder before turning back to the tomes.

"And your friend is? You do remember this isn't open to the general public."

"I'm sorry," Kerri said, facing the woman, a smile so fake Sam almost had to laugh. Kerri wasn't the kind of person to plaster a huge grin across her face. "Mrs. Crisler, this is my associate, Sam Conners."

"Pleased to meet you." The old woman smiled, her eyes sliding between Sam and the books on the table. "Researching another dig?"

"Yes," Kerri answered, still smiling, "and as you said, you'll be closing soon, so we really do need to get to work."

"I can take a hint. Just remember to leave the books on the table."

"Always." Kerri stated, rolling her eyes when the woman turned the corner.

"Wow, you're popular." Sam joked, flipping through the pages of one of the books Kerri had taken. They were actually ledgers dating back to the early 1800s.

"Ha-ha, aren't you funny. Apparently, old women think I'm up to no good. These are all the records from the county the church is in, it's divided up by years though, not town."

"Of course, that would be too easy." Sam sighed, rubbing his eyes before turning to the page in front of him.

Sam was beginning to think they were gonna run out of time before they found what they needed. The young hunter couldn't stop his mind from drifting as he started down at the page in front of him. _"No one can be saved."_ No matter what Sam said to the contrary, no matter how hard he fought, it was always the same— he always lost the people he loved the most. He could feel Evelyn's heartache, feel her fears, she had tried to save someone, and she had failed. It was something Sam had faced countless times, and he was terrified that it was something he was going to face again if he couldn't find his brother.

"I think I found something." Kerri began, breaking the oppressive silence. "Arthur Sumner."

"Who's that?"

"He was the church's caretaker from 1889 to 1907."

"Where'd he go after that?"

"That's the thing, he just kind of drops off the face of the planet. I mean, all that's listed here is 'departed without notice'."

"That doesn't sound at all ominous. Are you sure he didn't just move?"

"No. But everyone else has documentation about what happened. Either retired, married, died or moved. But he's just got an, oops he up and left, next to his name."

"And no one thought that was weird?"

"I found a little blurb about him in one of the other records. There was a rash of thefts in the town the year before and a bunch of guys blamed him. But the church stepped in and said they had no proof, they were basically blaming him because he was, get this, a loner with no known friends or family. He just worked and went home, every day."

"So, if something did happen to him no one would know."

"Looks that way. Apparently, no one even gave him the time of day until some local guys from the town started pointing fingers."

"Any names?" Sam asked, pulling out his journal.

"They have four men listed as possible suspects in the thefts, but none were ever charged."

"Are they the same guys that accused Arthur?"

"Yeah. Thomas Mitchell, Anthony Dartly, Gregory Hinker, and Wallace Paine."

"Wallace Paine?" Sam asked, flipping through the pages of his journal.

"Yeah, why?"

Sam smiled, holding the small black journal open in front of Kerri, thanking God he'd finally been given a break. "1947, Wallace Paine went into the church one night, his granddaughter said he was going to light candles. He never came home. That makes him victim number two."

"It could be a coincidence. Anything on the other three?"

"No, but I wasn't really looking. They aren't victims of the spirit, I know that. Does it give any other address for Arthur Sumner?"

"It does, but there's a problem." Kerri began, looking back and forth between a few books. "Apparently, the fire burned more than just the church, it took out half the city."

"So Arthur's house burned down?"

"I don't know. From what I can gather the town plans burned in the fire and they just started from scratch. They rebuilt most of the city, but changed all the street names and numbers, so anything that didn't burn—."

"Doesn't exist on current town plans."

"Right."

Sam rubbed his tired eyes, pocketing his journal as he and Kerri headed out of the archives. They needed to go back and talk with someone that knew the town, and Sam had a candidate in mind.


	7. Chapter 7

_so, a day off so a little bit of a quicker update. thank you all once again for the great reviews, i'm glad you're all still enjoying the story. as always, let me know what you think. :) enjoy. _

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 7

Dean leaned back against the pipe he was still tied to, his outstretched right foot tapping rhythmically against the wall in front of him, left leg bent at the knee. He had no idea how long he'd been sitting there, trapped in the darkness, alone. But surely, he'd been there long enough for Sam to have had time to find him. He continued to tap against the wall, straining his eyes in the darkness as he tried to see his foot. He thought he could make out a slight shadow, but it could have also been his imagination. He'd tried calling out for help, but his voice had long since grown hoarse.

God, he was thirsty.

He focused again on the wall, not wanting his mind to drift. Sam would be there soon, he was just over-reacting. And Dean was not going to give Sam any ammunition against him. Dean knew what his little brother was up to, had seen Sam conversing in secret with Kerri, trying to get dirt from when they were kids. 'Conversing?' What a freaking weird word, it sounded like something you should do with a shoe, not a snobby way of saying talking. But then, the english language was weird like that, lots of long, confusing words that meant the same thing as the nice short ones.

Dean shook his head, focusing once again on his tapping foot. He could feel his leg start to cramp and knew he should change to his left foot but well, he didn't want to end the rhythm. He was trying to keep the tapping in time with a second, so he could figure out how long it was taking Sam to get his ass moving. But his mind kept wandering, and he had yet to count higher than one hundred and twenty three, which didn't really help, since that was only two minutes. But, from what he could gather, he'd already been through about a thousand 'two minutes'. Which was how many hours?

There were five two minutes for every ten minutes, right? Yeah, that was easy enough math. Why couldn't hours be one hundred minutes long, then? Ok, Dean shook his head, focusing again on his tapping foot. If there were five two minutes in each ten minutes and six ten minutes in an hour then that was— thirty 'two minutes'. What do you know, still half, Dean smirked, his journey into math at least keeping his mind off the growing cramps.

So, thirty 'two minutes' made up an hour, and he counted what, a thousand 'two minutes'? Well, maybe not a thousand, but it was a good enough guess. Cause he was really liking the tens and halves at that moment. So, how many hours where a thousand 'two minutes'? Thirty some hours? Thirty three, maybe. Damn, he wasn't counting the taps from right now. So then, add thirty three hours to however long he was out, and the counting he was currently forgetting, Dean guess he was getting really, really close to forty eight hours— or less confusing, two days.

Dean continued to tap, running his tongue over his parched lips. Two days. That was more than enough time for Sam to come looking for him. Dean tried to shift but cried out in pain, the muscles in his back and shoulders seizing as he pulled them. So, Dean thought, back to the tapping. He'd started the tapping as banging, hoping someone, anyone would hear him— because it was obvious now that Sam wasn't coming. But now it was barely more than a light brush against the wall, and Dean himself could no longer hear it. But he could feel his leg moving back and forth, could feel his boot hit the wall, and that was enough.

As strange as it seemed, Dean found comfort in the action. He was trapped alone in a black void, his eyes unable to adjust to the never ending darkness. The wall, it was grounding him. It was something other than the cold floor he was laying on or the pipe that was holding him prisoner. But, more than that, it was giving him a sense of space. He didn't know what lay to either side of him, but he knew the wall in front was only a few feet away. It wasn't an abyss, wasn't a vast black hole of nothingness, it was a room, and space with tangible walls, and that offered at least a little comfort.

Tangible, Dean thought, his mind drifting as his leg continued its now painful tapping. If something was tangible it had to have tang, right? But what the hell was tang? He wished he could rub his head as a headache grew. What the hell was a tang, it was really starting to piss him off. What was even worse was he swore he could hear his brother's voice, mocking him from somewhere in the darkness.

"_Tang is latin, tangere, to touch. Don't you remember what Dad taught us, Dean?"_

"Of course I remember." Dean shot back, not liking the tone of Sam's voice.

_"Really? Then why're you tied to a post trying to remember kindergarden latin?"_

"Hey." Dean answered indigently. After all, it was Sam who was dropping the ball with the whole rescue thing. "Why don't you get me the hell out of here instead of lecturing me about 'tang'."

_"No can do, Dean."_

"Huh?" Dean's voice cracked, his tongue feeling heavier than it should have. "What do you mean, no can do?"

_"You got yourself in this mess, you get yourself out. I'm tired of having to clean up after you. I mean, first you lose Dad, then go and get him killed? You let your emotions get the better of you."_

"Sammy?" Dean crocked, his voice barely more than a whisper. God, he was thirsty.

_"Don't 'Sammy' me, Dean. You're too emotional to be a hunter. And look where it's got you, got all of us. Dad's gone, Jess is gone, Evelyn and Tom are gone."_

"I couldn't save them."

_"Yes you could. But you didn't. You just focused on yourself, and they all died."_

"Sammy, I'm sorry."

_"Sorry won't leave me alone to protect Jessica. Sorry won't change Dad's sacrifice. Sorry won't erase the fight that made us leave the Harrisons, leave Evelyn vulnerable. Sorry won't fix any of that."_

"Sam, please, just help me. I swear I can fix it." Dean knew he was pleading, but he had to get out of the darkness. Sam had yet to show himself, choosing instead to hide in the darkness that had been suffocating Dean. He still couldn't believe Sam was out and out refusing to help him, but Dean guessed he deserved it.

Sam was right, every time he made a mistake, every time he let his emotions get the better of him, someone died. He had to be better, be stronger— he owed that much to his father. For not the first time, Dean wished his dad had never made the sacrifice. John was a better hunter, a more needed member of the hunting community, he shouldn't have given up his life to someone that wasn't good enough to follow in his footsteps.

_"Why should I believe you. You've never kept a promise."_

Dean knew his brother was right— he had been unable to keep his promises. He used to tell Sam everything would be ok, that there were no monsters under the bed, and he'd been wrong. He told Evelyn he'd always be there to keep her safe, to ride her on the handlebars, and he'd been wrong. He told Kerri he'd never let anything hurt her again, and then he'd handed her over to a murderer. And he'd told Sam that once they found their father, everything would be alright— and that couldn't have been further from the truth. No, right now it was fate a lot, Dean Winchester zero.

"You shouldn't." Dean whispered, his gaze drifting off to the darkness, his eyes no longer trying to find Sam. He focused once again on the tapping, wondering how many 'two minutes' had passed while talking to Sam. "But I swear this time, Sam, this time I can be better."

_"That's just another broken promise, Dean. Hell, the one time I thought you saved me, it wasn't even you. It was Kerri's bracelet. You lied to me then, too."_

"I didn't know, not till the Roadhouse."

_"And you still didn't tell me. Dad trained us to be soldiers, Dean, you should start acting like it."_

"That's not fair, Sam. I try, I swear. Sam? Sammy?" Dean tried to call out into the darkness, the coldness of the floor coming back to him as he laid on the ground. Had he been sleeping? He couldn't tell anymore, all he knew was his head was killing him and he was so damn thirsty. All he wanted was a bottle of water, hell at that moment, he'd settle for a drop.

He tried to tap, needing the comfort of the movement, of the rhythm, but he found his leg was stubbornly refusing to move. His shoulders burned as he pulled himself back up to a sitting position, biting back a cry of pain as each and every muscle in his body seized up. He tried to roll his shoulders, tired to move his head from side to side, but he couldn't. Dean pulled in several deep breaths, trying to fight off the pain and dizziness. But it was no use.

His body suddenly went into a series of convulsions, his stomach contracting as he tried to expel the contents he'd eaten probably days earlier. But there was nothing left, so instead, he was just locked in a semi fetal position, his muscles so tense his body was unable to move. He could feel his feet bend, his calfs and shins locking up as his body continued to heave. He tried to call out, tried to find Sam, but his dry throat could no longer support sound.

And so, Dean leaned his head against a piece of brickwork that was to his left, wishing for the blissful oblivion of unconsciousness as his body continued to revolt. He couldn't tell what was real and what was a dream anymore, all he knew was that he needed to get away from the pain, from the darkness, from the solitude. He just needed it all to go away.

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"I told you before, I didn't see anything."

Kerri felt sorry for the kid, she really did, but now was not the time to be gentle. And well, with a six foot five guy staring you down like you just ran over his dog, the kid better start talking.

"Look, Mark." Sam began, breathing through his rising temper. At least the kid had the good sense to take a step back. "I know you saw something take Laurie. Now, Tell. Me. What. You. Saw."

"I swear."

"Don't swear— just tell me the truth, right now."

Kerri would have laughed at the kid's reaction if Dean's life wasn't on the line. He looked like a fish out of water, opening and closing his mouth as if gasping for air. Sam's stature and stern words were obviously doing the trick.

"I….. I… Laurie said there was something I had to see."

"I got that part."

"Look, Mister, I already told you all I know. I don't wanna get involved."

"Look, Mark." Kerri broke in, not trusting Sam wouldn't deck the kid in blind frustration. "Our friend, his brother, Dean went missing the other night. Now please, whatever you can tell us."

"You said you were detectives."

"They're not. But I swear to you, they can help. But please, we need to find Dean, first."

"It was a man, but not really." Mark began, his eyes locking with Sam's. "There was this secret passage behind the wall, Laurie told me it looked like it went back pretty far, so we went to check it out— and then, he came. I swear it was the freakiest thing ever. He just flew up out of the darkness, screeching. There were these old looking handcuffs or shackles around his wrists."

"Did he say anything?" Sam asked, not breaking eye contact. Kerri assumed he knew she'd remember every word the kid said.

"No, he just kind of screeched, like a scream of pure rage. He moved so fast, one second he was down the hall, the next he had Laurie by the legs. I couldn't grab her. It drug her off into the dark— I knew I should have followed but I was so freakin scared. I let her down, I was the only person that cared about her and I let her down."

"Listen to me, very carefully, Mark. I need to know every story you know about the town."

"Huh?"

"Ghost stories like the church, are their any others?" Sam pressed, and Kerri could feel her own heartbeat increasing. Dean had been missing for over two days— and his time was quickly running out.

"Uh yeah, there's an old shack about three miles off the end of Maple. No one goes to it, never."

"Why?"

"It's just wrong. Everything around it dies. This one kid in school said his uncle's friend was chasing her dog and the second the dog crossed the property, it just dropped, dead as stone. Plus, people say that if you ever actually make it to the door, you can feel it like its heart's beating."

Kerri resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She thought the kid was gonna give them tangible information, not an overblown urban legend. Judging by Sam's sigh and clenched fists, he'd been expecting better, too.

"You ever been there?" Sam asked, though Kerri knew they were quickly making their way back to square one.

"Hell no, no one's been up there for like a hundred years. The last guy that tried was never seen again. This dude, Arthur something, his friends said they were up there hunting and he vanished. Weird though, cause I think the dude actually lived there."

"Who said he was missing?"

"I don't know, some big name guy, ended up becoming Sheriff and everything, Wallace or William. Anyway, my dad says it's all a load of crap, that it's just private property. But still, no one ever goes there. Not since Wally said his friend vanished."

Kerri's mind was going into overdrive, each and every bit of information she had about the hunt shifting and sliding into perfect alignment. Wallace Paine had tried to accuse Arthur Sumner of thefts to most likely cover his own ass. Then, mysteriously, Arthur goes missing at his own 'haunted' house and Wallace and company come back with an off the wall story. Which, a hundred years ago was probably believed. Shortly afterwards, the town caught fire and Kerri imagined that was what really put a halt to the search for Arthur Sumner.

Add to it the fact that no one had been to the Sumner house in decades, and Kerri knew they'd found the perfect place to hide bodies, and she just hoped they weren't too late. She refused to lose someone else.

"Thank you." Sam called back to Mark, already making his way back down the stairs. Kerri shook her head, breaking herself out of the daze the memories created.

"Look." Mark began, holding Kerri back even as Sam made it to the car. "I know it's probably too late for Laurie, but I hope you find your friend. And I hope you kill the bastard that took them."

"You have our word, Mark, that thing won't last past tonight."


	8. Chapter 8

_hey guys. sorry about the long wait, i really have no excuse other than life. thank you all once again for the great reviews, i hope everyone enjoys the next chapter. )_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 8

Sam drove like a man possessed, his heart hammering out of his chest with each mile they traveled. The Impala ate the asphalt beneath its tires, and though they were getting to their destination faster than Sam knew was safe, he still felt like they were crawling. The car bucked violently as paved roads gave way to dirt ones, but still, Sam didn't slow down. Dean had been missing for over two days— he didn't have the luxury of driving slow. Kerri had a foot up against the dash, holding herself in the seat as she called out turns to Sam, the redhead grabbing the seat when Sam took a particularly sharp turn at break neck speed.

"It should be coming up, Sam. Just keep straight."

"Are you sure?" Sam asked, though he didn't turn or slow.

"Yeah. Well no," Kerri amended when Sam shot her a look. "I'm not a hundred percent sure of anything. But this is the best guess."

Sam just turned his eyes back to the road, hoping Kerri was right. Mark had said three miles out on Maple, but as with everything in Sam's life, it wasn't that straightforward. Maple was one of the old streets, before the fire, and it had apparently been abandoned almost a hundred years ago. Parts of it had been paved, mainly where it intersected newer, used road. However, much of Maple was little more than a wide path carved through the forest.

But it was more than the remoteness of the house, more than the disrepair of the road that had Sam on edge— it was what he would find. Dean had been missing for days, and Sam knew, deep in his heart, there was a very real possibility Dean wouldn't be safe and sound when they found him. Sam wasn't naive, he knew what happened to the body when it was forced to go days without water. It had been part of their father's survival training, and while he never wittingly made the boys go without food or water, he'd shown them picture after picture and told them account after account of just what starvation and dehydration could do.

And then there was the very real possibility Dean wasn't in the house at all. He could be anywhere, Sam knew that, and while going to the old house had only slightly better odds than a wild goose chase, Sam was still praying to god Dean was there. He refused to face the reality of life without his brother. Dean beat the odds, Dean lived forever, Dean always found a way to come back to him, to be his big brother. Dean promised to stand by his side, to never let him down, and while Sam knew perfectly well his brother couldn't control fate— Dean had still promised.

After what felt like an eternity a structure came into view— though Sam wouldn't have described it as a shack. It was a house and a rather large one at that. It was vastly over grown, and while the building didn't look all that sturdy, the abundance of plant life was a welcome sign to the weary hunter. If Mark had been right, anything that came near the house would die, including he, Dean and Kerri, but the plants and vines blew that theory out of the water. Though, Sam thought climbing from the car and running to the trunk, that also meant Mark could be wrong about the entire story.

"Here," Sam began, tossing Kerri a weapons bag without looking up. "Take anything you think we'll need."

Kerri didn't come back with a smart mouth answer, and while Sam was happy she was focused on work, the lack of any kind of comeback had him missing his brother even more. Not that Kerri was a replacement, hell nothing in the world could ever replace Dean, they just had a similar personality.

"Where do you think we should start?" Kerri asked after a few moments, Sam checking over his shotgun before closing the trunk.

"Mark said the spirit was in shackles, I'm guessing they chained him up somewhere and left him. I'm thinking basement or attic."

"Which one do you wanna take?"

"Basement," Sam answered, both relieved and worried when Kerri agreed to split up. There wasn't much of an option, though, they needed to find Dean, and they were out of time. "If you see or hear anything weird, get out."

"Same goes for you. And Sam."

"Yeah?"

"We'll find him."

Sam smiled at Kerri, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. Sam knew she was trying to help, to be reassuring, but at that moment, all the young hunter could focus on was finding his brother. Kerri wasn't there, the spirit wasn't there, the other missing people weren't there— no, all Sam could think about, all he could 'see' was Dean.

The door of the house was swinging sadly in a light breeze, and even though there were no boards blocking the entrance there were no tell tail signs of trespassers either. Whatever stories were told of the house, they'd done their job in keeping the curious out. The place looked like it had been abandoned over night, furniture still occupying the rooms, pictures on the walls, hell even a vase with long dead flowers was sitting on a table by the door.

Sam scanned the space first, his eyes drifting between the two sitting rooms on either side of the large staircase to the long hall and kitchen beyond— all looked quiet. He motioned Kerri to follow him, the redhead covering him while remaining safely in his shadow. Their footsteps were silenced by the decades of dust and debris which lined the floors, the occasional creak of rotting floorboards the only sound signaling their presence. With one final sweep of the floor, Sam pulled open one of the doors beneath the large staircase, the molding smell that always meant 'basement' assaulting his senses.

"Stay away from millionaires." Sam whispered back as he headed down the basement stairs.

"You're funny." He heard Kerri's distant voice answer, the older girl already heading up to the upper floors.

Sam closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before turning back to the basement stairs. He handled the gun and flashlight expertly, the two trained on the space around him as he studied every shadow. He had to fight the urge to call out for his brother, knowing he needed the element of surprise if he was going to take the spirit down. He listened intently as he walked, the deep creak and moan of the stairs giving way to near silence as he made it to the dirt packed floor. He strained to hear all the sounds around him, cataloguing the way the floors above moaned as the house moved in the wind, the sound of the mice running through the walls around him. He listened for Kerri, her distant footfalls nearly undetectable as they mixed with the rest of the noises the old house made. And he listened for Dean. He listened for his brother's voice, listened for tapping, knocking, banging, breathing, hell anything at that point. But, as far as Sam could tell, he was alone in the basement.

He moved through the first room quietly, opening the closets and cupboards that lined the left wall. Sam scrunched his nose at the jarred preserves, the food inside holding up about as well as the house around him. Whatever happened to Arthur Sumner hadn't been good. Sam felt bad for the guy actually, he'd been lost to the world, forgotten in an old house, mourned by nobody. It was a reality Sam knew he too faced.

How many times had he and his brother come close to death? He'd lost count actually, and that was unnerving in and of itself. But, what was even worse was that there were few people who'd even know if they vanished. They could have died any number of times in the twelve years they'd spent away from Kerri, and the redhead would have continued on her life, not knowing that somewhere in the world, he and Dean had been lost. Sure, there was Bobby, but even he'd lost touch with the boys while they were searching for their father. No, when all was said and done, all Sam and Dean had were each other. And now, Dean was lost.

Dead or alive, Sam knew he had to find his brother. He couldn't live with the constant question of 'where was Dean?' for the rest of his life. Sam couldn't live with that emptiness, the hole inside of him. Yes, when he was younger he'd walked away, given up on the man who gave everything to him, but Sam had been a child then, still naive to the world around him. Now he was different. He'd lived, loved, lost, and now he understood. He saw his family, saw his brother in a new light, and now he was terrified his revelation had come too late.

Sam moved into the back rooms, though they both turned up empty save for tools and cabinets cluttering the cement walls. He could feel his heart racing, his mind going into over drive as he made his way back to the stairs. The house was quiet and empty, a warm breeze filtering threw broken windows and rotting walls. It didn't 'feel' haunted. His heart clenched as he made his way through the house, pictures still hanging on the walls, a book still sitting open on an old end table, the dried remains of tea or coffee staining a near by mug.

Someone had left in a hurry or had been taken, that much Sam was certain of, but that didn't mean it was the same thing that had taken Dean— or that his brother was somewhere within the walls of the old house.

6666666666

Kerri held her breath with each creak and moan of the old stairs, the rotten floorboards beneath her feet bending with each step she took. The place looked and sounded like it was ready to come crashing down at any moment. She held the flashlight in her left hand, sweeping it back and forth across the halls, the shotgun held firmly in her right. But the place was quiet. She searched her mind, trying to come up with another hunt that matched this one, or hell, even someone who'd looked into the church before the Winchesters, but she had nothing. Whatever was going on in the small town was something Kerri had yet to learn.

She pushed open the nearest door with the end of the shotgun, peering into the room as she made her way slowly down the second floor hall. The place wasn't nearly as big as her home, thank goodness, but it was still big enough to slow their search, and Kerri knew they didn't have time to waste. She scanned three more rooms and a linen closet before she finally found the door to the attic. Taking a deep breath she moved slowly up the rotting stairs, keeping to the sides of them to avoid falling through the middle of the rotten wood. The place was ready to fall down on top of them, and at that moment all Kerri wanted to do was find Dean and get the hell out.

Reaching the top of the stairs Kerri swept the light back and forth across the large attic, the beam playing off the many trunks, boxes and other clutter stored in the space, sending shadows everywhere. She moved quietly across the room, her heart racing with each creaking board. She knew she needed to have the element of surprise on her side, even though she knew that was probably blown with all the creaky boards.

Her mind drifted as she wandered the space, long forgotten times boiling to the surface. After the boys' departure her attic, once proudly declared a boys only club by seven year old Sam, had become her sanctuary. There was a strange peace at the top of the world, a distance she graved after her friends had left. She didn't want to be a part of the world, especially after she learned what her father had done. So, she shut it all out, locking herself away in the attic for hours on end, hell, sometimes even days. A part of her soul longed for those days, for the times when she could lock away the world, but she also saw how big a mistake it was. She'd tuned out everything, including Evelyn and she had never been able to get any of it back— until now. For years she had hoped and prayed the Winchesters would return, and after her sister's death, she only wanted Sam and Dean more. The solitude that had once comforted her had now become her prison and she could feel herself slipping further and further into the abyss.

Sam and Dean were not constant, Kerri knew that. They were hunters, and if there was one certainty in the lives of hunters it was that they didn't live forever. No matter how good, no matter how strong, no matter how prepared, something was always stronger, better. It was like a game of russian roulette, and Kerri knew there would come a day when the boys drove out of her life and didn't return.

Kerri stilled when she felt a cold breeze run up the back of her neck, her right hand tensing on the shotgun as she turned— but there was nothing there. "Sam?" she called out tentatively, her blue eyes scanning the attic. Something was there, she could feel it. She raised the shotgun a bit more, moving stealthily though the large attic, taking in every shadow, every breeze.

"They left me." Kerri turned at the voice, whoever spoke it leaning against her, sending tendrils of ice cold air down her neck. But again, there was no one there.

"Who left you?" Kerri asked, moving across the room.

"I screamed." The voice sounded by Kerri's left shoulder, the redhead spinning at the sound. But still she was alone. "I yelled." It spoke again, Kerri firing at a mannequin she swore was a shadow. "I cried."

Kerri pumped the shotgun, taking aim again as the voice continued, though it sounded like it was echoing from all around her.

"No one came for me."

Kerri felt the gun fly from her hands, her body lurching from the force of the blow— but she stood her ground. The boards around her creaked and moaned, the house swaying, dusting falling down around her as an unnatural wind began to grow. The spirit was trying to manifest itself, trying to take her, though she assumed Dean's abduction had taken away a lot of its power.

The blast of a shotgun made her gasp, Kerri jumping about a foot in the air before turning toward the stairs, just in time to see Sam rush into the room. "You scared the freaking hell out of me."

"You're welcome." Sam shot back, scanning the room for Arthur. "I think he's gone. Did you find anything?"

"No, you?" Kerri asked, though she already knew the answer. If Sam had found Dean he wouldn't have left him behind.

"Damn it."

"We still have a whole house to search, Sam." Kerri tried to sooth both of their frayed nerves as she made her way to the shotgun, her flashlight bouncing off the walls as she walked. "What the—." Kerri stopped short of the gun, her flashlight's beam falling on the hole she'd made when shooting at the mannequin. There was something shinning on the wall— no, in the wall.

"What?" Sam asked, coming up behind her, but Kerri's eyes were focused on the wall.

"Oh god," she began, finally seeing what the light was reflecting off of. It was a silver necklace, but what made it worse was what the necklace was handing around.

"Oh god." Sam mimicked, he too looking through the gap in the wall. There, tied to one of the pipes was the body of a girl, and now Kerri knew exactly where Dean was.

She began pulling away the boards, trying to get a glimpse of the rest of the space behind the walls while Sam searched the room for something to break through the boards. The girl before them was a lost cause, having died who knows how long ago of dehydration. And if Dean was in the same predicament, they knew they didn't have time to waste. Sam came back a moment later with a sledgehammer and it didn't take the pair long to tear out all the walls around the attic— and while they found a total of seven bodies, they didn't find Dean.

"Come on, he'd gotta be in one of the rooms, the basement's all cement." Sam began, racing from the attic.

"Sumner's gotta be here, too."

"I know, Dean first bones later, just keep your eyes open. Sumner's gotta be the oldest one, right. The ones in the attic don't look like they've been here long enough."

Kerri didn't answer, instead choosing to follow Sam. The younger hunter raced down the stairs, slamming the sledgehammer into the first wall he could find. It was instantly obvious their method was going to take way too long.

"Here, just break it open enough for me to climb in, we don't have time to break every body out."

"Ker, you sure?" Sam asked while swinging the hammer again, and Kerri knew what he meant. There were countless dead bodies beyond the wall, and they both knew the images would be burned in her brain forever. But hell, something that horrible would be permanently etched in any decent person's mind.

Kerri just nodded, stealing herself against what she was about to see, hoping Dean would be among the living when they found him. They worked as quickly as they could, Sam breaking a hole in the wall every fifteen feet or so, stopping only long enough for Kerri to climb in. But they came up empty every time. They were surrounded by bodies, some having disappeared generations ago, others within the last few years. And Kerri knew how each and every one of them died. They were simply left to fade away.

A cold breeze began to grow as they worked their way down the second floor hall, the size of the house working against them. Kerri shivered as she pulled back out of the wall, three more bodies, yet still no Dean or Sumner. "Something's coming." she whispered, following Sam into the nearest room. The breeze growing around them was like a January gale, and it was mid June.

"I know, keep going." Sam grunted, swinging the hammer into the wall again, the rotten boards falling away beneath the blow. Kerri leaned in to check the space while Sam continued his demolition, both more than aware of the energy growing around them.

Kerri jumped when a shotgun blast ripped through the heavy air. "Sam?"

"Just keep checking." Sam called after another shotgun blast filled the room. Arthur Sumner obviously didn't want his prizes found.

Kerri climbed into the small space Sam had made, taking care not to hit the bodies as she climbed over them. She heard the retort of the shotgun once again, then all was silent. She climbed haphazardly over the extended legs of Sumner's victims, the bodies all in various states of decomposition. She pulled up the neck of her tee shirt, blocking out the smell of the stagnant air around her, her flashlight barely breaking through the darkness.

"Ker?" Sam's voice broke through the stillness, a hint of panic lacing the words. "Ker?"

"I'm alright." Kerri called back, realizing she'd climbed inside the wall without letting Sam know her plans. She really was going to have to work on the whole wandering off thing.

"Where are you?"

"In the wall, I figured I'd just keep looking."

"Anything?"

"No."

"Alright, stand still a minute."

Kerri did as she was told, a hole opening in the wall not three feet in front of her. She tried to use the light filtering in from the room to scan the space around her, dust raining down on her as the hammer crashed through the wall again. Sam grabbed Kerri's arm as he helped her through the hole, dust and debris raining down on the pair of them from as the old house began to crumble. "Come on, this was the last room up here. He's gotta be downstairs."

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Dean blinked in the darkness, his mind playing tricks on him again. It sounded like Sam, he could have worn it was Sam, but he knew it wasn't. His brother wasn't coming, he'd have been there already. Dean stared off into the darkness, it was a struggle to keep his eyes open. He was so tired. He could feel the darkness creeping in, his head pounding with each racing beat of his heart. He felt like he'd just run a marathon. Every muscle ached, his entire body seizing with each movement he made.

A loud thud brought Dean back into the moment, his mind taking longer to clear than he thought it should have— had he fallen asleep? He couldn't tell anymore, everything just blended together in one big ball of dark nothingness. He could feel dust and grit raining down on him, but he couldn't be bothered to search for its source. All he wanted to do was give into the darkness, the sweet void calling to him, promising to take away his pain.

_"There's the kitchen and the two front rooms. They've gotta be here."_

Dean tuned out the voice, knowing it was just his imagination, just like before. Sam wasn't coming, no one was coming. Dean let himself fall away, the sound of Sam's voice the only comfort he could find in his dark prison. He knew his brother wasn't there, knew he was alone, but at that moment, he would take whatever he could get as he slowly gave into the void.


	9. Chapter 9

_it's that time again. thank you all so much for the great reviews, i'm glad everyone's enjoying the story. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 9

Sam ran up the stairs when he heard Kerri call his name, the air around him growing colder as he reached the open door of the attic. He was spurred on by the sound of a shotgun blast, his heart rate increasing with each step he took. The young hunter took the last two steps in one stride, his breath catching in his throat at the scene that greeted him. Kerri was standing in the middle of the large attic, struggling to keep her footing as a wind began to grow, the house creaking and moaning from the onslaught. She was so preoccupied by the gale, though, that she didn't see the entity coming up behind her.

Sam had never seen a spirit quite like it. Arthur looked emaciated, as though he hadn't eaten in well over a month. The ghost was also more animalistic than any the youngest Winchester had ever encountered. It was crawling along the rotting floorboards of the old attic, stalking its prey like a cat in tall grass. Its eyes were bloodshot and hungry, its mouth hanging open, jaw obviously broken. Its skin was grey and papery, like dried out vegetation, its hair nothing more that wisps of smoke hovering around its head. It was grotesque.

Sam pulled his eyes away from the spirit, raising the shotgun and firing before it had the chance to steal someone else he cared about.

"You scared the freaking hell out of me." Kerri gasped, turning toward him moments after the spirit vanished.

"You're welcome. I think he's gone, did you find anything?"

"No, you?" Kerri asked, and Sam's heart immediately sank. He could feel each moment as it drifted away, every second passing another second closer to losing Dean forever. He needed his brother back, needed Dean by his side, but doubts and what ifs were slowly starting to creep into Sam's mind.

"We still have the whole house to search, Sam." Kerri spoke again, though Sam wasn't sure who she was trying to reassure, herself or him. "What the—?"

Sam turned at the question, his eyes following Kerri's line of sight. He could see something shinning near the hole in the wall Kerri had made with her shotgun. He moved toward the redhead, his senses on high alert as she approached the wall. He wasn't an idiot, he knew the ghost's M.O now and he also knew Kerri fit it just as much as Dean, maybe more so.

She was the epitome of left behind. Everyone had forgotten about her, pushed her aside, let her fall off into a nearly forgotten memory. She could be lost and never missed— hell she'd been in the hospital for an entire week before he and Dean even found out she was hurt. And that time didn't even count the three days she spent alone in her home, injured and abandoned. She was the perfect bait for the spirit. No, Sam told himself, Kerri Harrison was not bait. He refused to put her in the line of fire again, refused to let her face danger without protection. He needed to save her, Evelyn's words drifting back to him as he watched Kerri.

_'I couldn't save them.'_

Sam knew he was tied to Evelyn somehow, he could feel it. He didn't know what was going on, not just yet, but he knew not to ignore it, not to play it off as a tired mind. Something was happening, a subtle shift shaking all of them. Evelyn couldn't save 'them' and Sam vowed he wouldn't fall to the same fate. He didn't know who Evelyn's 'them' were, but he knew who he needed to save— Dean and Kerri.

In all the commotion that had become their lives, Sam had let himself be blinded. John was dead, gone forever, and Sam knew he had to focus on the here and now. Both Kerri and Dean were spiraling, mere shadows of who they had once been— and Sam needed to save them, to bring them back. All his life he'd been saved by others, both physically and emotionally, but he wasn't a child any longer. He was strong, stronger than most, and he knew he was different. The Yellow Eyed Demon had done something, changed him somehow, and he knew it was more than just his psychic abilities. Something was happening to him, changing inside him, and he wasn't sure what to make of it. All he knew was that now, finally, he had the power to save the people he loved.

"What?" Sam asked, staying close behind her, his eyes peeled for Arthur.

"Oh god."

Kerri's strangled gasp brought Sam's full attention to the hole in the wall, and the small silver chain shining in the dull light of the flashlight. "Oh god."

Sam took in the body of the girl, his heart beating hard in his chest as all the pieces of the puzzle finally fell into place. He knew where the victims were, and he knew how each and every one of them had died. They'd all been abducted, sealed inside the walls of the old house, and left alone to die of dehydration. It was a torture he wouldn't wish on his worst enemy, and it was a torture his big brother was currently enduring.

Sam searched the attic for something, anything to break through the walls, even though Kerri was already pulling the boards down by hand. He knew her tactic would take time, and it was time Dean didn't have. The body could survive three days without water, and his brother was slowly nearing the seventy two hour mark. Sam nearly cried out in relief when he found an old sledgehammer, wasting no time taking out the wall nearest him. The spirit already knew they were there and Sam knew now was the time for action. Between the two of them it took fifteen agonizing minutes to tear out the walls of the attic— and while they'd found a total of seven bodies, Dean was nowhere in sight.

"Come on, he's gotta be in one of the rooms, the basement's all cement." Sam called over his shoulder, Kerri's voice calling back to him from a few paces away.

"Sumner's gotta be here, too."

"I know," Sam breathed, slamming the sledgehammer into the first wall he could find. He knew all too well Sumner was in the house, he'd just watched it nearly take Kerri to god knows where. "Dean first, bones later, just keep your eyes open."

Sam swung again, his muscles burning from the effort. But he didn't stop, and he wasn't going to until he found his brother. Dean was close, Sam knew it, but he still felt miles away from the older man. No matter what he did Sam still couldn't find his brother. It was like trying to run up a mud slicked slope, and Sam could feel hopelessness creeping into his soul.

"Here, just break it open enough for me to climb in. We don't have time to break every body out."

"Ker, you sure?" Sam asked, knowing what Kerri was suggesting. She fit the ghost's M.O and was about to walk right into its favorite hiding place. Kerri hadn't seen the spirit creeping up behind her, hadn't realized how close she was to becoming another victim.

Kerri just nodded, taking a deep breath before climbing into the wall. Sam stayed by her for a few moments, making sure Sumner wasn't waiting for her on the other side, but her all clear signal had him breathing a sigh of relief. He walked a few feet down the hall, swinging the sledgehammer several times until he was certain the hole created was big enough for Kerri to climb through.

They continued on like that for a short time, both occupied in their tasks— Sam breaking through the wall, Kerri searching inside. The brunette wished he could trade places with Kerri, wished it was him and not her forced to climb into a small space literally crammed with decaying bodies. He had the overwhelming urge to protect her, to shield her from the horrors of the supernatural world. He knew it was futile, knew she'd long ago learned what was really hidden in the dark, but that didn't stop his protective streak.

Kerri was normal to him, was safety, home and family. After all, Valley was the only 'home' he'd ever known. The Harrisons were a reprieve, a bit of light in the overwhelming darkness of his life— they were untouchable. Or at least, they had been. But time destroys, time steals, time breaks, and time hadn't spared Kerri and her family. The large house he'd once believed imagined, the place he had dreamed about had transformed into a crumbling building. The old front porch now sagged, shingles falling off the roof daily, the old wood siding showing signs of termites. It was vanishing into the past, disappearing beneath the march of time, and it wasn't fair. Sam needed it back, needed normal, and if he couldn't save Tom, Evelyn or Valley, he was sure as hell gonna save Kerri.

Sam pulled back the hammer again, hesitating when a cold breeze began to fill the second floor hall. Arthur Sumner was coming back, and Sam bet he was gonna be pissed. Sam eyed the last gap he'd created, letting out a breath when he saw Kerri climb back through.

"Something's coming," she whispered, Sam's body tensing as he swung the hammer again.

"I know, keep going." Sam grunted, swinging the hammer once more before moving down the wall. He could feel the energy growing around them and he knew they only had a few moments until Sumner rose again.

Sam wasn't far off, the spirit of Arthur Sumner appearing feet behind Kerri, the redhead once again oblivious to the attack. Sam wasted no time, pulling the shotgun from his belt and firing, his dark eyes scanning the room around him.

"Sam?"

"Just keep checking." Sam spun, firing the shotgun when Sumner tried to materialize again. They were getting close, Sam could feel it, but he also knew they were running out of time. Sam continued to scan the space, the cold wind filling the room, ominous creaks and moans floating through the heavy air. He needed to get this over with before the place came crashing down on top of them.

Sam caught something out of the corner of his eye, firing just as the very faint image of Sumner managed to materialize. The spirit was getting tired. "Ker?" Sam looked around the room, suddenly realizing Kerri was nowhere in sight. _'No, no, no.'_ "Ker?"

"I'm alright." Kerri's muffled voice answered, though he still had no idea where she was.

"Where are you?"

"In the wall, I figured I'd just keep looking."

"Anything?" Sam asked, leaning his head against the wall, his tired eyes closed as he prayed.

"No."

Sam sighed, his aching body slumping as adrenaline left him. "Alright, stand still a minute." Sam tucked the shotgun back into his belt, taking the hammer to the wall once more, hoping Kerri wasn't standing directly in front of him. He swung the hammer a few more times, breaking a hole big enough for him to climb through.

He leaned into the wall, dust and debris raining down on him from the crumbling house, the scene that greeted him nearly making him sick. Bodies, there were bodies everywhere, and Kerri was climbing over them like the last survivor of a great war. Sam reached into the space, taking his friend by the arm as she tripped and stumbled over the corpses. "Come on, this is the last room up here, he's gotta be downstairs."

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Kerri followed Sam down the stairs, shotgun in hand, waiting for attack. Something had gotten Sam on edge, well something more than a lost brother, pissed spirit and broken house. She knew now wasn't the time for questions, though, and so she filed this one away with the thousand others she needed to ask the younger man.

"There's the kitchen and the two front rooms." Sam began, turning to Kerri after he made sure the coast was clear. "They've gotta be here."

"Alright, the kitchen looks like it's all cement, too. How about I take one room and you the other."

"No." Sam shouted, grabbing Kerri's arm as she turned. "No, no splitting up."

"Sam—."

"No, Kerri. We stick together, we get Dean, and then we get the hell out of here."

"What about Sumner?"

"Salt and burn the house."

"The whole place?"

"Just down here, we know he's not upstairs. Look, Ker, we're out of time. We do this my way."

"Alright." Kerri answered, sorrow filled eyes scanning the young hunter. Yes she knew he was a hunter, it wasn't a secret, but until that moment, she'd never really seen him as such. He'd always been Sam to her, the gawky little kid Evelyn followed around. He'd never been a grown man before, never been a hunter— but now there was no denying what he had become.

The pair made their way to the front parlor, Sam wasting no time breaking through the old walls. They'd only been working for a few minutes when a cold wind began to fill the room.

"Don't stop, Kerri. Whatever happens, don't stop looking."

Kerri just nodded, climbing into the wall as Sam made his way around the room. She had to duck and weave several times as the upper floors began to crumbed into the ground level, the hammering obviously doing nothing but damage to the aging structure. They needed this to end and now.

"Come on, Dean." Kerri breathed, stumbling over the body of a woman in a poodle skirt. Kerri cursed as she fell into what looked like the flu to an old chimney, her hand sliding across the old brick as the flashlight slid from her grasp.

"Freaking house, I can't wait to burn it the hell down." Kerri mumbled, reaching down for her flashlight. The sight that greeted her next had her blood running cold. There, illuminated by the dim light of the flashlight was a very familiar boot.

"Oh no, no, no." Kerri whispered, sliding past the chimney and kneeling in front of her long time friend. "Oh god, Dean, no please." Kerri could feel tears running down her face as she reached for the older hunter's pulse, praying to god she'd find something.

His skin was cool to the touch, his lips swollen and cracked. He was leaning against the old chimney, his hands held painfully behind him, face turned down to the ground. She couldn't tell if he was breathing, but after a few tense moments, she managed to find his pulse.

"Oh thank god. Dean?" she ventured, placing her hand on the side of his face, gently pulling him up from his slumped position. "Come on, Dean." She asked again, but his eyes still refused to open.

"Sam!" Kerri called, hoping the brunette could hear here. "Sam! I found him."

After a few seconds, a flashlight appeared in the hole she'd climbed through. "Is he?"

"He's alive, but he's in bad shape, Sam. We gotta get him to the hospital."

"Alright, I'll break a space closer to you."

"No, Sam, he's right underneath one of the support beams. It looks like one more blow's gonna send it crashing down."

"Alright, here," Sam answered, tossing Kerri his lock pick. "I'm gonna take care of Sumner, be ready to get him out of there when I say go."

"Ok, be careful, Sam."

"You too."

Kerri turned her attention back to Dean, leaning around him as she began working on the handcuffs. The space was small and she was forced to nearly sit on the other hunter as she worked, and his lack of complain or snide comment only served to make matters worse. She wanted him back, wanted Dean with her, safe and whole. She couldn't survive losing him, that much she knew, and she'd be damned if he was gonna get taken out by a spirit. No, if Dean Winchester was gonna go down, it was gonna be in a blaze of glory.

She could feel his breath warming her neck as she worked, his head resting against her right shoulder. After a few tense moments, his hands broke free.

"Hmmm." Dean moaned as Kerri pulled his arms in front of him, the change in position sending shots of pain through his dehydrated body.

"Dean?"

Confused green eyes slid open, Dean taking in the scene around him as if he'd just awoken to an alien land.

"Hey, over here." Kerri answered softly, gently turning his head so their eyes met.

"Wh?"

"Don't talk, Dean. Just relax, Sam and I've got you. You're gonna be ok."

Dean's jade eyes were glassy and unfocused, his arms hanging limply at his side even though Kerri could tell he was trying to move them. She began searching his body for other injuries. He had a large knot on his head from where the spirit had attacked and his muscles were rigid and spastic due to lack of water. He was standing on the edge, and he was about to fall into the darkness.

Kerri pulled a bottle of water from her pocket, pouring a bit on her hand and running her fingers over Dean's parched lips. He lurched toward her like she had some kind of prize, struggling to get his body to listen to him as he searched out the water. "Easy, Dean, just a little bit."

"Please." Dean choked out, and Kerri could feel her heart break. She filled the small cap with more water, tilting it toward Dean's lips as he drank greedily. She knew too much would send him into shock, but he needed something in his system.

Kerri sat down beside Dean their shoulder's touching, waiting for Sam. She ran her hand through his short hair, whispering softly to him, telling him everything would be alright. He relaxed into her embrace, his head resting against her shoulder, legs still stretched out in front of him. His right leg looked like it was in the middle of some kind of spasm, and the more Kerri tried to sooth and stop it, the more agitated Dean became.

"Dean, stop."

"No, it's all—. It's all—."

"Ssshh." Kerri smoothed, running a hand up and down his arm, finally realizing what Dean was doing. He was tapping against the wall, or at least he was trying to. From the state of his body Kerri assumed he hadn't been able to actually hit the wall in quite some time, but it was the only thing he could do to comfort himself, to keep himself from going crazy, and Kerri wasn't about to stop him.

Kerri felt herself falling to the darkness Dean had been a prisoner to for over two days. She knew about everything in the world, had seen and remembered every bit of research any hunter had ever found, and yet she still couldn't save the one person that mattered. Dean wasn't supposed to be broken, he was supposed to be a hero, to be her hero— but fate and time didn't seem to hold Dean in the same light Kerri did.

The dark wanted to take him away, the evils of the world gnawing at their heels with each step they took. Kerri could feel them all slipping, vanishing in the void, losing to emptiness. Their enemies didn't care about their love for each other, didn't care about their pasts together or what the future could hold. No, all the darkness did was destroy, and Kerri was afraid she was losing the only light she had left, even while he sat by her side.


	10. Chapter 10

_well, i've been productive today. a one shot and a chapter. :) sorry for the wait, thank you all one again for the great reviews, i hope you're all still enjoying the story. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 10

Sam ran through the crumbling first floor of the house, his heart hammering in his chest. He'd gotten Dean back, so why did it still feel like his brother was miles away? He grabbed the duffel he'd dropped by the door, pulling out the salt and gasoline— he was ending this, now. Arthur Sumner had taken too many people already, and Sam wasn't about to let the spirit take his brother. He had no idea where the angry caretaker was, and he just prayed it hadn't attacked Dean and Kerri. Neither was in a position to defend themselves, and Sam berated himself for leaving them behind. But he had to destroy the spirit, there was no other way, and destroying it meant leaving Dean and Kerri's side.

Sam could feel the cold wind begin to pick up as he worked his way around the ground floor, the air around him becoming charged as the spirit tried once again to manifest. They were out of time. The entire house was crumbling around them, the groaning and creaking of the old structure growing louder as Sam worked, dust raining down from the floors above. Once he was certain he'd saturated the space, he turned back to where he'd left his brother and Kerri.

"Hey, you two alright?" Sam asked, peering through the broken wall. He knew he couldn't get them through the same opening Kerri had used to enter. Despite the danger, the young hunter had to break through closer to Dean. There was some sort of obstruction blocking him from the pair, which, in hindsight he should have seen coming— when was life ever easy for them?

"We need to get out of here, Sam." Kerri answered, and Sam felt his heart sink. He knew his brother was sick, knew he was suffering from sever dehydration, but still, the young man wished Dean had been the one to answer him. He needed to hear his brother's voice, needed to see the older man for himself before he let himself believe he really had Dean back.

He could see Kerri trying to shift Dean's much larger frame even though they both knew she didn't have a chance of moving him. "Don't move, Kerri."

"Sam, you can't fit through the opening, I'm coming to you."

"Ker, for once in your life just listen. Stay still, I'll break in down there."

"Sam, this whole place is gonna fall in on top of us."

Sam sighed. He could hear the worry and fear in her voice, and he knew she was quickly losing her composure. But the young hunter also knew they only had the one option. "We gotta get out of here, Kerri. Get him ready, I'll let you know when I'm gonna break the wall, then we move."

Sam moved toward them, his breath coming out in cold puffs of air— Sumner was close. He gripped the hammer tight, taking a steadying breath before swinging, everything was going to have to happen in a few short seconds. "Ready?" Sam called, pulling back the sledgehammer, already starting his swing before waiting for her reply.

It was instantaneous. The hammer slammed through the wall, sending dust and debris raining down on Sam as the brunette pulled back and swung again. The second swing took out even more of the old house, Sam having to cover his face and head as a section of ceiling fell far too close for comfort. He dropped the sledgehammer, jumping into the wall as an angry scream ripped through the house.

"Kerri—." But Sam didn't need to say anything else as Kerri was already shifting Dean into his outstretched arms.

Sam's heart beat fiercely in his chest when he took Dean's limp form from Kerri's arms. Dean was pale, too pale, his lips chapped, cheeks red from a slowly growing fever. He limps were twitched in what Sam knew was the beginnings of a seizure. God, they were too late. He'd been too slow, hadn't put two and two together fast enough and he was losing Dean because of it. It was like the hunt in Wyoming all over again. He'd found Dean, but that didn't mean his brother was out of danger and once again Sam felt helpless.

The retort of the shotgun broke Sam from his tumbling mind, Kerri kneeling by his side, shotgun in hand. Sam could feel the charge in the air and knew their time was up. Arthur Sumner was making a last stand, and he was determined to take Dean into hell with him. Sam turned all his focus toward his brother, knowing Kerri could cover them and retrieve their weapons. He heard the shotgun blast again as he pulled himself to his feet, swinging Dean over his shoulders in a fireman's carry.

Sam made it no more than two steps before he heard the front door of the old house slam shut, the young hunter sinking to the ground with his brother even as Kerri checked the door— but he knew what she'd find.

"It's locked. I can't get through."

Sam was spent, his nerves going into over drive as he knelt by his unconscious brother in the crumbling house. He was not going to lose— he refused. Has could hear a torrent roaring in his ears, could feel a fire growing inside him. He was tired of losing, tired of having the darkness steal away what he love the most. He needed to save his brother, he needed to save Dean, every fiber of his being called for it.

Sam was vaguely aware of Kerri's voice but he couldn't focus on anything other than the growing melee around him. The spirit was fighting him for his brother, but Sam refused to give up the battle. He could feel the air around him grow deadly still, the charge growing like static electricity, making the hair on his arms stand on end. He could see Evelyn's eyes again, the pale orbs shinning in front of him, almost like she was there, watching him. She'd lost, but he wouldn't.

Before Sam could even register what was happening the once sealed front door flew open, the wall behind him crumbling to the ground with the force. And Sam didn't waste a second. He pulled Dean over his shoulder once more, ducking around a falling piece of the upper floor as he told Kerri to light it up. He didn't know where Sumner was and he only hoped Kerri was following after him when he felt the heat of fire at his back. The place was burning, but the hunt was far from over.

Sam fell into the grass a few hundred feet from the house, his lungs burning from the smoke and strain of carrying his brother. He could hear the spirit's final screams as the building collapsed and burned, Arthur Sumner's reign of terror was finally over, but Sam was afraid the spirit would still lay claim to its final victim. The entire world stood still when Sam looked down at Dean. The older man was awake now, or at least semi-conscious, probably from all the jostling. He was looking up at Sam, his green eyes glazed and unfocused. He looked so lost, so broken.

"Sm." Dean breathed, though Sam knew what his brother was saying.

"Yeah, Dean, I'm here." Sam coughed, cursing as he pulled out his cell phone and saw no signal. Who the hell was he gonna call anyway? They couldn't go to the hospital, not with Hendricksen on their tale. God, they were so beyond screwed.

"Sam." Kerri's voice broke through, making Sam look up. Kerri was covered in soot and coughing, but she was alive and at that moment it was all Sam knew he could ask for. "We gotta get him to the hospital."

"No." Sam's voice broke. Dean was in critical condition, his body failing even as he laid in the damp grass. Despite everything his brother had done, despite all the people Dean had risked his life to save he was still left broke, still left dying with no place to go. "We can't. The FBI, there was this hunt—."

"It's ok, Sam." Kerri answered, her voice soft, a comforting hand resting on his shoulder. At that moment Sam wanted nothing more than to crumble into the comfort of the older girl, to let go of all the responsibility and let someone save him. Kerri had always been there, picking up the pieces when Dean had been hurt on a hunt, and Sam had forgot just what a comfort she had been. "I know someone."

"Where? Who?" Sam asked, locking eyes with the redhead.

"A friend back near Valley. He's a doctor, works at one of the clinics, he'll help."

"He'll ask questions."

"No, he won't."

"Ker, I don't know."

"You can trust him, Sam. I promise."

Her promise was all the young man needed. Kerri was a good judge of character and if this doctor was someone she trusted, then Sam knew he was Dean's only chance. Sam didn't waste anymore time getting Dean into the Impala— leaving the burning remains of Arthur Sumner's house in their rearview mirror.

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Brian Mallory rubbed his tired eyes, the too bright light on the desk blinding him. He hated paperwork, but it had to be done. He'd run his own small clinic for six years now, and he'd never once looked back. He'd done his residency at a big name hospital in California, and his fellow doctors had told him he was in for a bright, star studded future in medicine. But Brian wasn't in it for glory, he was there to help people, to give people a chance. He thought the big university and city hospitals were the way to go, but he'd quickly learned that wasn't were his future lied.

The bigger the hospital the more red-tape he found himself wading through. Every way he turned there was someone asking him to fill something out or someone being turned away at the door because they couldn't afford the services. It was stifling. It wasn't that he had anything against his fellow doctors or the hospitals themselves, he just wasn't cut out for the fast pace life of the Hollywood hospital scene. And so, six years ago he'd packed up and moved to a tiny little town that needed help. The closest hospital to Valley, Wyoming was an hour's drive away, and the local doctors offices reminded Brian of something out of an old western. But hell, it was that very small town charm that led him to the clinic in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

It was peaceful in Valley, and he used to joke with his parents that driving to Valley was like driving back in time. It was beyond quaint, more on the forgotten end of things, but Brian loved it just the same. One of the drawbacks, though, was that he ran everything himself, which often had him up at all hours of the night filing charts and ordering equipment and taking care of the general office maintenance he couldn't get to durning the day. He'd had a secretary of sorts for a little bit, but that memory always opened old wounds, and Brian found that, alone in the middle of the night what had once been was a bad thing to dwell on.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the deep guttural growl of an engine, the car's tires crunching against the dirt and gravel parking lot. He glanced up at the clock, it was 2:30 in the morning, and experience told the thirty six year old doctor that whatever was about to come through the door wouldn't be good. He threw on his lab coat and stethoscope, moving out into the parking lot to head off whoever was out there. He wasn't an idiot, midnight calls weren't his normal riding accidents or scraps and spills— no, it was normally things of a less legal nature.

And, the minute Brian laid eyes on the men before him, he knew the police were probably close behind. "Can I help you?"

"My brother." The tall man began, pulling an almost unconscious man from the car and draping him over his shoulder.

"Whoa, what happened?" Brian began, trying to coax the man back into the car, knowing if push came to shove he was going to get his ass kicked.

"We don't have time for this, my brother's dying." the man pushed back, his eyes flashing dangerously. Whoever these men were, they were trouble.

"If you don't cooperate I'm going to have to get the police involved."

"I don't have time for this."

"Brian." Brian froze at the voice, his heart hammering in his chest as a lump formed in his throat. He spoke to her on the phone monthly, checking on her, making sure she hadn't fallen into a black hole somewhere— but it was rare when he saw her in person. And now here she was, showing up at two a.m with two very dangerous looking men.

"Kerri? What the hell is this?"

"Please, Brian, we need help."

Brian looked between Kerri and the tall man, moving to the redhead's side before addressing the man. "Second room on the right, there's a gurney there, I'll be right behind you."

"Thank you." and with that the man vanished into the clinic.

"Kerri," Brian began, grabbing Kerri by the arm as she made to follow. "Are you alright, what'd they do to you?" he asked, noticing her attire, a large bruise already forming by her collar bone. She was noticeably thinner then the last time he'd seen her, her face drawn, eyes sunken and dull. It looked like she'd been through hell and back.

"They didn't do anything."

"Ker, don't lie. Did they get into your house again? I mean, they never caught the guys last time."

"Brian, I swear they're my friends and they didn't do anything."

"Ker, they're vagrants. I mean, how are they your friends?"

"Can you help them or not?" Kerri stated coldly, her piercing blue eyes locking with his.

"Yes, but I'm contacting the police."

"No. No cops."

"What's going on with you? I mean, you leave me, which I guess I understand, with your family and all. And then a few month ago you up and start vanishing for days at a time. You're sick, I could hear it in your voice and I can see it now. And I haven't forgotten someone attacked you at home. And now you're showing up with two guys that are wanted by the police?"

"You know me, now please, just trust me. We don't have time."

Brian sighed, knowing he would never be able to outlast Kerri. He'd been with her long enough to know that once she sent her mind to something she was going to accomplish it, no matter what. "What happened to him?"

"He was trapped, we couldn't get to him and couldn't get help. He was without water for a few days."

"A few days?" Brian asked, leading the way into the clinic.

The gruff looking younger man looked far softer in the bright lights of the exam room. He was tired, Brian could see it plain as day, his shoulder slumped as he ran a hand over the other man's forehead, holding him firmly against the gurney as he promised help was on its way. Yes they still looked like escapees from a slasher film, but if there was one thing Brian had learned it was not to judge a book by its cover.

Brian let the man talk, working around the pair as he set up an IV, knowing he had to get the patient hydrated if there was even gonna be a chance to save him. The moment he tried to insert the needle, though, the brunette turned on him like a pit bull. "What're you doing?"

"Kerri said he was without water, I'm giving him an electrolyte solution."

"Sam." Kerri began, and the brunette, Sam, immediately stood down. And like an alarm bell going off, the young man's name sank in. This was Evelyn's Sam.

"You're one of the Winchesters?" Brian stated, sparing Sam a glance before turning his full attention to the other man, Dean if his guess was right.

"Kerri told you?"

"Not Kerri, more like the whole town of Valley. You two were more like an urban legend. I honestly wasn't sure you were real till Evelyn showed me a picture."

Based on what Sadie Miller and the other residents had said about the Winchesters Brian was sure the brothers had died long before hand, either that or ended up in jail somewhere. And, based on their current actions, he figured the town's stories of them weren't far off. But then, Kerri wasn't the kind of person to get mixed up with trouble. She was too smart to fall for the 'bad boys', she just didn't have time for that. Kerri was the kind of girl that knew what she wanted in life and never let anything hold her back— at least she'd been like that before her sister's death. Losing Evelyn had changed Kerri in ways Brian had never thought possible.

"I need to get some blood so I can test it against later samples and see if the therapy's working." Brian directed his attention to Sam, knowing the younger man was watching his every move. He could see the tall kid's muscles relax at the explanation, the reality of his entire experience finally showing through his eyes. "Do you need to sit down?"

"No, no I'm fine."

"Ok, Sam. I'm gonna get some samples then I need to talk to Kerri, you can stay with your brother."

"Is there anything else you can do?"

"At the moment, no. He's in and out of consciousness so hopefully he won't need to be transfered to an actual hospital. If his electrolytes bounce back he should be fine. He's young and healthy."

"Ok," Sam began, sinking into a chair by the bed. "thank you."

Brian just nodded before taking Kerri by the arm and leading her from the room. He was worried about her, and every fiber of his being needed to keep her safe. Yes, she'd given him back the engagement ring but that didn't mean she was out of his heart and mind. The two men in the clinic were dangerous, he could see that, and he wanted to make sure Kerri understood exactly what she was getting herself into. Yes, she'd known them as children, but that was a long time ago, and not everyone remained honest and trustworthy when they grew up. Kerri may have seen the boys as her personal heroes, but Brian knew they were far more dangerous then his ex-fiance could imagine.


	11. Chapter 11

_hello everyone. thank you all so much for the great reviews, they really make my day. only two or three chapters left after this one. thank you all for sticking with it. work has been slowing down so i'm gonna do my best to post every tuesday. :) so, see you all again tuesday. _

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 11

Kerri allowed herself to be led away by Brian even though she kept her gaze locked on Dean and Sam. No, it was only when her former fiance led her around a corner and into his office that she looked him in the eye. She felt an overwhelming rush of emotions when she looked up into his dark blue eyes. She'd agreed to marry him, but she always knew deep in her heart that it had been for the wrong reasons. After Sam and Dean left Kerri tried to put as much distance between herself and her father as possible. She didn't blame him, not entirely at least, but without the Winchesters the hunting life was nothing but a vast and empty void. And, every time she looked at her father all she could see were mistakes and missed opportunities.

Brian had been a lifeline for her in those troubled times, and she'd grasped onto that little bit of normal with every fiber of her being. She felt safe with him, saw the possibility of a future with him, and she was accepted by the town when she was with him. It was like emerging from an endless night. But, the one thing that was really and truly missing from her heart was what should have been the most important thing— love. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, wanted to bask in the promise of normal. Yes, she wanted to marry him, but not because she was madly in love with him. She wanted the constant he offered.

It was an illusion, a lie she'd somehow made herself believe, and it had all come crashing down one late summer night in 2005. The loss of her father and Evelyn at the hands of the Yellow Eyed Demon only proved to Kerri that no matter what she did, she could never escape who she really and truly was. Add to it her father's little 'experiment' and a happy future with Brian turned into nothing more than a pipe dream. It wasn't fair to her or Brian, but it was the way life was, and the young redhead had learned long before that fighting fate was a futile cause— because no matter what, fate and destiny would win every time. She was who she was for a reason, whether she liked it or not, and the day Evelyn died was the day she decided once and for all to accept that, no matter the consequences.

"Ok, start explaining." Brian began, rounding on her when they entered the office.

"Explaining what?"

Brian just gave her a look, and Kerri knew full well what the older man wanted. But she had nothing to explain, this was her life and as much as it may have hurt him, Brian wasn't a part of it any longer.

"I already told you."

"What happened to Dean? Yeah, you gave me a story, which I don't believe by the way. But that's not what I meant. What's been going on with you the last few months? And don't just tell me to trust you, I deserve more than that."

Kerri looked at him long and hard— what had been going on the last few months? She'd come alive again, that's what had been going on, her one wish had come true. Ever since that ill-fated summer day in 1995 Kerri had been praying for one thing and one thing only, Dean and Sam. There were times during the brothers' absence Kerri wished she'd never met them that long ago winter day. If she'd never met them, then she wouldn't miss them so terribly. But Dean had come stumbling into her life at the age of six, and Kerri had never been the same.

The blonde often told her she had saved him back then, but Kerri knew it was the other way around. Kerri was floundering when she was a child, lost in a world where she was always pushed aside, always whispered about and ignored. And then came Dean. He was the first person that actually payed attention to her for who she was, and not what she was.

Kerri looked up at Brian again, not sure what to say to him. He knew nothing of the hunting world and the redhead was determined to keep it that way. She was forced into it, and once you learned the truth there was no turning back.

"I'm sorry, Brian, it's just not something I can explain."

"Why do you trust them so much? I mean, you haven't seen them since you were a kid and people change."

"They haven't. It's something I can't explain, and I know you don't wanna hear 'trust me' but they're two good guys, and they always will be."

"Two good guys that are running from the cops?" Brian countered, crossing his arms.

"What people think are facts aren't always the real facts."

"Kerri, come on, they still never caught the guy that hurt you. If you're being held against your will, I know someone that can help get you to safety."

Kerri smiled a little at the older man's persistence. She was as safe as she would ever be with Sam and Dean, and nothing would change that. "We took care of it."

Brian opened his mouth and closed it again, staring down Kerri. "What?"

She continued on the lie, or half-truth, whatever you wanted to call it. "Sam and Dean tracked him down, it's taken care of." Kerri looked down at her feet, fidgeting a bit beneath Brian's gaze— hoping her act was paying off.

"That's why they need to stay under the radar?"

Bingo. "Yeah, I mean, the guy deserved it, but juries and all that— he won't be missed."

"Sadie always used to say they were dangerous."

"She also said I was a devil spawn because I have red hair, you kinda gotta take her with a grain of salt."

Brian smiled, moving a few steps closer and pulling Kerri into his arms— she didn't resist. She missed him, she wouldn't lie, and she'd enjoyed her life with him. But the past was the past and she knew she'd never be able to return to it. "Thank you, Brian," she whispered, returning his embrace, her head resting against the taller man's chest, arms around him.

"Just, promise me one thing, Kerri." Brian began, pulling away from her. "Keep in touch a little more often. I worry about you." He spoke softly, his eyes locked with her's, running his hand through her long hair.

"I'll try." Kerri smiled, rubbing Brian's arms. She knew it was a promise she'd have a hard time keeping, but he did deserve a 'hello I'm still alive' a little more often.

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Sam sat in the hard plastic chair, his eyes fixed on the still form before him. Brian had given Dean a sedative after a series of seizures tore through his body. And while the doctor assured him Dean was responding to the electrolyte treatment, Sam still felt uneasy. In wasn't natural for Dean to be so still, so quiet. Dean was always moving, always talking— and no matter how much he claimed it annoyed him, at that moment all Sam wanted to hear was his brother's voice. The older man hadn't said a word since they found him, hadn't been conscious for more than a few seconds at a time. It was tearing Sam apart.

The young hunter bowed his head, resting his forehead against the thin clinic mattress. He was smothered. Everything about his life was crashing down on his already heavy shoulders. It had been a little less than a year since a botched hunt brought he and Dean back to Valley, Wyoming— but to Sam it felt like a lifetime. So much had happened in that time, so many secrets revealed, so many memories changed, and the brunette was finding it hard to deal with the upheaval.

He couldn't lose anyone else, couldn't watch as more people he loved slipped through his fingers. First Jessica, then his father, then Evelyn. One by one, those around him fell. It was like watching his worst nightmare unfold and being unable to effect the outcome of his own life. He was trained to fight, trained to save people, and he still lost everyone that mattered.

"You still think he can be saved?"

Sam looked up, spinning in the chair at Evelyn's voice. The twenty-two year old Evelyn was looking solemnly at Dean's still form. Sam still couldn't believe how beautiful Evelyn was, her long dark hair falling to her waist, wrapping around her face and shoulders in soft subtle waves. Her eyes were pale and piercing, but still warm, like deep, clean springs. And, if he didn't know any better, he'd say she was glowing, like there was an soft aura around her spirit. Sam studied Evelyn again, a thought suddenly racing through his mind. She couldn't be a spirit, Kerri said she'd been lost in the fire, that there was nothing left to bury. Evelyn's remains had already been burned, so by all accounts, she shouldn't be standing before him.

"What are you?"

"I've already told you, Sam. I'm Evelyn."

"Your body was burned, you spirit can't remain."

"There's more than one thing to be anchored to, Sam."

"Why are you here? Why can't you move on?"

"I couldn't save them."

"Yeah, Ev, I get that." Sam began, scrubbing his face, not even realizing he'd used the familiar nickname with a long dead girl.

"I can't sit and rest when I know they're gone."

"Only your father is gone, Kerri's safe." Sam tried to explain, remembering the young girl's fears when the Watcher had attacked their home. Kerri had been taken by the spirit and held for three long days, and each and every one of those days had been torture for Evelyn. Each day she sat by the door and waited for Dean to return, dying a little each time when the then eleven year old boy returned empty handed.

"Is she?"

"Yeah, I mean, we'll keep her safe."

"We're all going to lose, Sam."

"Why do you keep saying that?"

"There's no way to fight a darkness that's in all of us." Evelyn was getting more and more cryptic the longer she spoke, a dark veil growing around her as the world seemed to slip away. Sam tried to focus on her, but all he could see were her pale eyes shining out against the darkness that was slowly swallowing the room. He tried to speak again, tried to get up from the chair, but found himself being suffocated by the overwhelming darkness. The last thing he registered before darkness claimed him was the constant beeping of Dean's heart monitor.

66666666666

Kerri made her way down the hall, wanting to be with Dean. This had been way too close, and she wouldn't feel completely at ease until Dean was his smart-ass self again. He wasn't supposed to be so bruised and battered, wasn't supposed to be hurt. He was supposed to be larger than life— he was her hero after all. All her life he'd been the only person to ever 'save' her, the only one to step in and take away the darkness. Sure her father had been there, but he wasn't Dean, and Kerri knew no one would ever be able to fill the blonde's shoes.

The redhead smiled when she walked into the room. Sam was sitting in the same chair she'd left him in, his head resting against the bed, deep asleep. She couldn't blame the kid, though. He hadn't slept since Dean had gone missing, at least not that she knew of, and she was pretty sure he hadn't eaten either. The past few days were just a whirlwind, and now she knew it was time to rest. Brian told her Dean would be fine once he recovered, barring any unforeseen complications. It was all she knew she could ask for, and she was beyond thankful he had been able to help.

When she'd first found Dean in the wall, Kerri was certain he was dead. And, in that short moment, she felt her entire world crumble and fall into ruin. Even when Dean wasn't with her he was still 'around' and that had always been enough for the young woman. Death— that was an alternative she knew she would never be able to deal with. Off on the road doing what he did best, that was one thing, gone from this earth forever, that was something else entirely. Dean needed to be a phone call within reach, even if she never called— she just needed to know he was there.

She moved further into the room, resting her hand on Dean's foot when she made it to the bed. Even though they'd only been there a short time he looked better. His arms and wrists were bruised and his hair was dark with both debris and soot, but the color of his skin had started to come back a little, and his heart had finally settled back into a normal rhythm. She sat on the end of the bed, watching the boys sleep, thankful they'd found peace, even if it was only for a moment.

Kerri's reprieve didn't last long, though, her eyes growing wide when her gaze drifted from Dean to Sam. The brunette was lying still— too still— and one look at his face had her heart racing. Blood was running from his nose.

"Sam!" Kerri jumped off the bed, shaking Sam's shoulders— but she got no response. "Don't you dare, Sam." Kerri breathed, shaking the young man again. "Brian!"

"What? What happened?" Brian asked a moment later, running into the room.

"I can't wake him up."

"Who, Sam? Why didn't you tell me he was hurt?"

"He wasn't. I mean, I didn't think he was. He passed out back at the house before, I thought it was cause he hadn't eaten. But now he's bleeding from his nose."

"Do me a favor, Ker, get another bed from the other room."

Kerri wasn't gone for more than a minute, knowing exactly where Brian kept all the supplies. She pushed the second bed into the room, locking it in place as Brian gently lifted Sam's head from the mattress. With Kerri's help he managed to get Sam's much larger frame up on the bed, wasting no time checking over his vitals and hooking up a few machines.

Kerri couldn't believe what was going on. She was so focused on finding Dean she'd pushed everything else aside, and now Sam was paying the price. She hadn't even given Sam's fainting episode earlier a second thought— and then she'd walked into the room and let him lay there for several precious minutes, thinking he was only sleeping. All she wanted to do was keep them safe and happy, and she was unable to do either. Hell, she couldn't even keep them safe in the hospital.

"What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

Brian turned toward her, taking a deep breath before looking her in the eye. "If you would please give me a few minutes of silence it would really help."

"Sorry." Kerri whispered, moving over to Dean's bed. She wrapped her hand around his, absently rubbing her thumb against his palm as she watched Brian work on Sam. He'd been fine when she left, what the hell had happened in that short time?

She sat on the edge of Dean's bed while Brian worked, her mind lost in thought, lost in the what ifs of her life. Every time she thought one was safe the other ended up falling. Her mind drifted back to the day the earth demon had followed John and her father home, the day they'd nearly lost Sam forever. She had been trying to save Dean, trying to give him a life she knew he wanted. He wanted to finish school in Valley like they'd planned, and while neither Kerri nor Dean had ever planned on going to college, they both wanted to at least walk together. And then John had stepped in. He insisted Dean take the GED and get it over with, and Dean followed orders.

Kerri had been trying to help when she got her father involved, she really had, but it turned out to be another terrible decision in a long string of bad ideas. Everything backfired on her, nearly killing Sam, and sealing all their fates forever. Dean and Sam left because of her interference. And now she'd put Dean ahead of Sam, and it was coming back to bit her in the ass. He'd passed out in her arms, she should have done something about it then, but she'd let it go.

What's worse, was that this had been happening since they were at the Roadhouse. The Trickster said something about Sam being weak, and now Kerri was afraid the creature she'd made a deal with had done something to the younger hunter. She wrapped her hand around Dean's arm, needing the comfort he offered, even if he was still out of it. She didn't know how long she sat like that, holding onto Dean, watching Brian work on Sam's still form. She was lost in a tidal wave, drowning in her life and she was afraid both her lifelines would soon be gone.

"Ker?"

Kerri looked up at her name, the room around her slowly coming back into focus. "I'm gonna go run some blood work. You said he might not be eating or drinking right? So I've got him on fluids through IVs."

"You still don't know what's wrong?"

"No. But his vitals are good, I think he'll be fine, I just wanna make sure."

"Ok. Thank you, Brian, for everything."

Kerri turned her attention back to Sam, her hand wrapped around Dean's arm. She was so lost in thought she didn't see Brian look back over his shoulder, studying her and the brothers. No, all she saw, all she cared about was Sam and Dean, because when all was said and done, they were the only form of family the twenty-nine year old had left.


	12. Chapter 12

_hey all, sorry this took a bit longer than the tuesday deadline, the holidays threw me a little in the timing department. thank you all once again for the great reviews, i'm glad you're all enjoying it. as with 'door in the dark' the final chapter of 'afterglow' will be posted on tuesday, barring any unforeseen events. :)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 12

Darkness, it was the first thing Sam was aware of, a quiet comfortable darkness. After all the stress of the last few days Sam finally felt relaxed, calmed. He stayed in the stressless void for longer than he knew, floating in the warm darkness, hidden away from a world that was trying to drown him. Something in the back of his mind told him he should be awake, that there were things to do, but at that moment all Sam wanted to do was hide away in the haze. Life had become one big ball of pain and suffering— and no matter what actions the young man took, he always felt like he failed.

The darkness around him began to fade, replaced by a dull but incessant beeping. He tried to block out the noise, tried to erase the world beyond the comfort he was currently enjoying. But instead of dissipating the beeping grew. Slowly the events of the last few days came back to the hunter, the images of what he'd endured flooding back to him. Dean. Sam pushed his eyes open, amazed at how heavy his lids were. The last thing he remembered was sitting next to Dean's bed— so why the hell was he laying down? He groaned as the overhead lights assaulted his sensitive eyes, a headache growing with each passing second.

He blinked a few times, forcing himself up onto his elbows despite the pain in his head. Dean was still asleep, Kerri now laying across the foot of the bed, looking like she'd simply toppled over from a sitting position. Sam studied the pair for a few minutes, his heart rate slowing as he watched them sleep. They were both by his side, both safe.

"Welcome back."

Sam turned at the voice, his eyes landing on Brian. The doctor was standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame. "What happened?"

"You passed out, but apparently you can't do anything halfway. Your blood sugar and potassium levels were very low so I put you on an IV drip." Brian answered, motioning to Sam's arm, the older man still leaning against the doorway. It was almost as though he was afraid of entering the room.

"What about Dean?"

"He's doing better, though he still hasn't woken up yet."

"Is that normal?" Sam asked, his gaze moving to his brother. Dean had to be ok, Sam didn't know what he would do if he wasn't.

"Not exactly, but it isn't anything to worry about yet."

"What do you mean yet?"

"From what it sounds like he's been through a lot, and I saw a few scars in just the short exam I did."

"So?" Sam began, his anger growing. How dare this man judge Dean.

"I'm not insinuating anything. I'm just saying this is probably his body's way of resting. When was the last time he actually had a vacation?"

Sam couldn't hold in the laugh— vacations and Winchesters didn't go together. Honestly, the last 'vacation' Sam could remember his brother taking was Dean's three states in three days road trip.

"I didn't think he was the vacationing type." Brian began, finally stepping into the room. "Give it time, once he wakes up I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Is Kerri ok?" Sam asked, glancing at the girl draped across his brother's legs.

"Yeah, she's just sleeping. I was gonna move her, but she looks oddly comfortable."

Brian's words were halting, as though talking about Kerri was causing him physical pain. But Sam had once been in love, had been ready to marry, he knew what it felt like to have that taken away. Sam looked up at the doctor again, finally taking him in. This was the man Kerri had loved— the thought seemed alien to Sam. Not that Kerri had been in love, that was normal, it was just, Kerri was Kerri, and Sam had no better way to describe it.

This was the girl that could go toe to toe with Dean during the prank wars, the girl that had once dyed him green. Kerri rode mountain bikes, Kerri made ammunition, she wasn't a girl that thought about getting married and settling down, at least she wasn't when she was sixteen. Meeting Brian only solidified just how far apart they had all split, just how much time had passed. When they knew each other their lives were still fresh, still promising— but now, even in their twenties, their futures were already spent.

"Yeah, she's like that." Sam began, feeling strangely uncomfortable with the doctor. Brian knew a side of Kerri Sam would never see, and the young man couldn't help but be jealous. Kerri was his friend, the girl he'd grown up with, Brian was just someone who'd stepped in the way of her life years later.

The two sat in awkward silence for what seemed like forever, the steady beep of Dean's heart monitor the only sound. Worlds were colliding and they were worlds that didn't belong together. Sam almost had to smile, they were hunters, even Kerri though she often claimed otherwise. Their lives were characterized by cheap motels, sleazy bars and back country roads. It was part of a hunter's job to be unnoticed, to be over looked or ignored. Yet, when both he and Kerri chose to leave the lifestyle behind, they'd each done a complete one-eighty. Sam was going to be a lawyer, and Kerri nearly married a doctor. It was as opposite of 'hunter' as possible.

Sam looked back up at Brian, noticing the man was still watching Dean suspiciously. "He's not gonna jump up and bite you."

"Huh?" Brian asked, turning back to Sam. "I didn't think he was."

"Then why do you keep looking at him like he's Godzilla?"

Brian smirked, "I see where Kerri gets her smart mouth from."

"Oh, that's definitely not from me, try having a conversation with her and Dean, it's terrifying."

Brian's smile faded a bit at the statement, his eyes drifting back over to the sleeping pair. "Evelyn used to talk about you guys— a lot."

"I'm sure Kerri had her fair share of stories, too." Sam answered, his mind drifting back to his most recent encounter with the mysterious brunette.

"No, no it was all Evelyn."

Sam didn't know what to say, he was sure Kerri had told stories. But, Sam thought to himself, she was always more reserved around strangers, more guarded, and he doubted she had changed during their absence. "What'd Evelyn say?"

"Not a lot, she didn't like me. It was more of 'just wait till Sam and Dean come back."

"She used to threaten you with us?" Sam asked, not really believing Brian. Evelyn loved everyone, it was one of her more annoying traits. Sam could remember competing with her one day to see who was the sweetest. Sure, they'd been about nine years old, but even at the age of twelve Evelyn could still charm those around her. The thought of a closed off, bitter Evelyn was just not something Sam could fathom. But then, Kerri said she'd changed after that day, grown darker. Hell, Kerri had even said she was afraid of her little sister in the end.

"Evelyn always believed you two were coming back from wherever it was you went. To tell you the truth, I thought she'd made you up at first, but her dad pointed out some pictures in the foyer."

Sam was still amazed Tom Harrison had kept their pictures up throughout his house. Their families had not parted on good terms, and that one fact was now a nail in Sam's already bruised heart. Tom had put it behind him, hell the whole Harrison clan had, everyone had forgiven— except John. And it was that one stubborn mind that kept them apart forever.

"Kerri never said anything?"

"Kerri always lived in the moment. She didn't like to dwell on things. I used to get wrapped up in things— I'd get in a funk if I lost a patient or something happened between colleagues or family. But Kerri was always there. You know she's got that 'everything happens for a reason' mentality, that everything'll be better if we just have faith." Brian smiled as he talked about Kerri, but Sam was at a loss— at that moment, he wasn't even sure they were talking about the same girl.

Kerri was accepting, but it wasn't a result of any type of optimism. She was accepting of the world around her because she was tired of fighting it. Dean still fought, and Sam fought because it was the only thing keeping him from losing his mind— but Kerri, she never fought. Sam was too young to remember their first trip to Valley, but after much pestering Dean had told him the story. Kerri had a wall around her from a very young age, and Sam knew the only reason she was able to save Dean was because she actually understood him.

Kerri didn't believe the future held any promise, she just knew facing each day was a part of life— whether welcome or not. And if she was like that when Sam knew her, he could only imagine what had happened to her after they left. The brunette felt suddenly sorry for Brian— if Kerri was good at one thing, it was hiding. She probably put on a happy face and told him what he wanted to hear. She was playing a part, the same part she'd always played when she ventured outside her little world, she'd just kept the facade up long enough this time to break the doctor's heart.

Sam looked back over at the redhead, the incident with the Trickster still fresh in his mind— maybe Brian wasn't the only person to get pulled into her charade.

"Yeah," Sam began a moment later, "she's like that."

Brian cleared his throat, "even though she never talked about you, it was always obvious she cared. Evelyn would go on and on about what it would be like when you guys came back, and Kerri would get this look on her face— it was tough."

"Tough?"

"You try measuring up to a legend. The way Evelyn talked you'd think you guys destroyed monsters or something."

Sam forced a laugh, "Ev always did like her stories."

"I wish I got to know the kid better, but she was just so protective of Kerri, I couldn't get close."

"Protective of Kerri? Why?" If anything it was the other way around. Kerri sheltered Ev, gave her more than the hunting life— so when had their roles flipped so completely?

"Yeah, I mean with you leaving, her dad always away on business and Kerri's epilepsy, it was a lot for a kid to deal with."

"Kerri's what?"

"Epilepsy. Her dad said she'd always had it." Brian began, eyeing Sam wearily. "I don't think that's the kind of thing you'd forget."

"She never had epilepsy."

"Maybe it started after you saw her last, I think Tom said the first attack happened when she was about sixteen."

Sam's mind was racing— Kerri didn't have epilepsy. At least, he didn't think she did, but the more Brian talked, the more the mystery grew. The Evelyn and Kerri the doctor was talking about were not the Evelyn and Kerri Sam had grown up with. Had their absence really done that much damage?

And suddenly, Evelyn's words came back to him. _'There are other things to be attached to.'_ Evelyn's spirit remained because she had somehow attached herself to Kerri. But then, why only show herself to him? Sam was saved from answering when a low groan issued from the other bed, Dean moving beneath the blankets as he slowly awoke.

Dean fought against the restrains of both the blankets and Kerri, reality coming back to the man faster than Sam knew he could handle. The last thing Dean knew he was chained in a wall, alone and slowly dying of thirst. Sam pushed himself off the bed, throwing his legs over the edge as a wave of dizziness assaulted him.

"Stay in bed, Sam." Brian began, making his way to Dean's side.

"You don't understand—." Sam broke in, pinching the bridge of his nose as a migraine grew.

"Dean?" Kerri mumbled, waking when Dean's struggling grew in intensity. "Dean, calm down."

"Move out of the way, Kerri, I can handle this." Brian stated, pushing his way to Dean's bed.

"Brian, no—." Kerri wasn't quite quick enough in her semi-sleep state, and the minute Brian grabbed Dean's arm he was thrown back forcefully, his head smacking into the bottom of Sam's bed.

"Damn it." Brian mumbled, rubbing the back of his head as he stood. "We're gonna need some restraints."

Sam didn't remember getting off the bed, didn't remember the few strides it took to throw Brian up against the wall. No, all he knew was one second he was on the bed, and the next he had the now terrified doctor up against the wall in a choke hold. Sam took a step back, letting the doctor slide back against the wall, the older man rubbing his throat and coughing.

"Don't you dare." Sam breathed dangerously, knowing he'd gotten his point across loud and clear. Dean wasn't some animal that needed to be caged, wasn't some danger that needed to be dealt with. He was Sam's big brother— and at that moment Dean was hurting and needed help.

"Dean, calm down." Sam heard Kerri repeat the soothing words as he continued to stare down Brian, making sure the doctor wasn't going to run off to the nearest police station. They'd been stationary for too long and now that Dean was awake, they would make their leave. Brian lived in a different world than the rest of them, and it was time to let him go back to it.

"Sammy?" Dean moaned, blinking fiercely against the bright lights around him. He was still struggling a bit, but the fact that Kerri was now holding him down meant he didn't have much strength left.

"I'm here, Dean." Sam began, moving to his brother's side. "You're ok."

Dean's green eyes searched for a moment before settling of Sam's face. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry? Dean, what're you sorry for?"

"I screwed up again."

"No, you didn't. It was my fault."

"Are you real?" Dean asked, his voice scratchy, reaching out a shaky hand.

"Yeah, Dean, yeah I'm real." Sam answered, resting his hand on Dean's arm, wondering what the older man's dehydrated mind had managed to come up with. Dean hated being alone, hated being left behind, and that's exactly what had happened to him.

"Where?"

"At a clinic near Valley. Kerri brought us here."

"Kerri?" Dean asked, suddenly becoming agitated again. "Don't, Sammy, it'll get her."

"Ssshh, Dean, we took care of it, Kerri's fine."

"Where?"

"I'm right here," Kerri soothed, resting her hand on Dean's leg. Sam didn't miss the look on Brian's face at the contact. Apparently, Sam wasn't the only one jealous of the different bonds Kerri had with people.

Dean's eyes settled on Kerri, his expression softening as his gaze drifted back and forth between her and Sam. "You ok?"

"Yeah, Dean, we're fine."

"Home." Dean groaned, trying to push himself up off the bed.

"Whoa there, brother." Sam began, pushing him back down. "Not so fast. Brian?"

"Brian?" Dean asked, becoming more and more lucid with each passing moment.

"The doctor," Sam stated, not wanting to get into the whole 'Dean, meet Kerri's ex-fiance' discussion right now.

"I'll wanna keep him through another round of IV fluids, so a few more hours at least." Brian began, though he looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "I'd prefer twenty-four hours observation after that, but something tell's me that's not gonna be happening."

"Pretty bright for a quack." Dean chided, closing his eyes. "Where'd you find 'em."

"It's a long story." Kerri began, sitting on the edge of Dean's bed, her hand still resting on his leg.

Sam patted his brother's shoulder once more before turning to Brian, the man obviously looking for some reason to leave the room. "Is there paperwork or anything we need?"

"Yeah, yes, I'll go get it together for you." Brian quickly left the room, but not before taking one more look at Kerri and Dean.

Dean was talking quietly to Kerri, and though Sam couldn't hear from the doorway, he knew they were making some comment that was probably less than appropriate. He made his way back over to his own bed, sitting on the thin mattress as Kerri looked up.

"Feeling better?"

"I thought you said he was fine?" Dean asked, turning his still hazy eyes to Sam.

"He passed out, nose bleed and all, scared me to death."

"Was it a vision?"

"No," Sam answered, still not wanting to tell them he'd been having regular conversations with Evelyn.

"Then what?" Dean pressed, trying to sit despite Kerri holding him down.

"I didn't really eat or sleep while you were missing, guess it caught up with me."

"You should be resting then, maybe get doctor dude to put the IV you ripped out back in." Dean gestured weakly with his head, Sam only then noticing the bleeding gash in his arm.

"I'm fine."

"That's my line. I'm the big brother, I'm allowed to worry."

"What about you, Dean?" Sam began, knowing his brother had been through a terrible ordeal.

"I'm ok, Sammy."

"But, the wall—."

"I'm ok, Sammy." Dean repeated, his voice a bit stronger. Sam knew what it meant and for once decided not to press the issue. "So, who's the doctor?"

"No one." Sam stated. He hadn't wanted to hurt Brian while he was still in the room but Dean didn't need to know who he really was.

"Come on, Guys, I'm not oblivious."

"It's Brian." Kerri answered absently, still in physical contact with Dean. Sam knew she was terrified when he'd shown up at her door, terrified she'd never see Dean again, and it was obvious now she was still afraid of losing him.

"I heard that, who's Brian?"

"Three times now, Dean, you always ask who he is. Do you listen to me when I talk?"

"Not all the time."

"Brian, ex-fiance, went to Ireland with, Brian."

"Like, the Brian that called when you were attacked by the Trickster?"

Sam could see a storm brewing in his brother's eyes, Dean's protectiveness returning tenfold. Dean had been put off when Kerri first mentioned Brian and Sam knew the fact that the doctor had been the one to contact the police when Kerri was nearly killed still ate away at Dean.

"Yes, that Brian."

"Why'd you bring me here?"

"Cause he won't call the police."

"Why not just take me home, you could've patched me up."

"Dean, you were dying." Kerri enunciated every word, her slim body shaking as she tried to get the stubborn hunter to see just how close he'd come to death.

"It wasn't that bad."

"Yes, Dean, it was." Kerri's voice rose. Now that they knew the blonde would be fine it was time for them to be back at each other's throats. Sam couldn't help but smile, though, it was Dean and Kerri, the way they should be, and he wouldn't change that for the world.


	13. Chapter 13

_yup, i know it's no longer tuesday.... sorry about that. it's been a busy week. thank you all once again for the great reviews, they really make my day. yes, this is the final chapter of this story, i know it seems like there's a lot to wrap up and there is. lol. this story is part one of a two part 'mid-series finale'. the second half of this story will be called 'Out of Sight but in my Mind' and should be out most likely in february. between now and then there will be the final weechester story of the series. hope you all enjoy :) and for anyone wondering, yes i do have the entire series mapped out from beginning to end ;)_

**AFTERGLOW**

Chapter 13

Dean relaxed on the old sofa in the back room, staring off into space. They'd been back at Kerri's house for three days, but to Dean it felt like an eternity. Things were different between them all now, well, things were different between Kerri and Sam. Dean couldn't remember much of the last week, most of his time lost to the void of dehydration and abandonment. Deep in his heart he knew Sam and Kerri hadn't given up on him, but that fact didn't lessen the fear one bit. He hated being alone, and somehow the spirit knew his worst fear was to die without his family— to just vanish into nothing.

Dean didn't leave a lot behind, he knew that. He had no home, no milestones to speak of, no real legacy. It was completely plausible for him to simply drive down the road and off into oblivion— and it terrified him. He couldn't be left behind, couldn't be forgotten, because that meant he was truly alone. It was already too easy for him to be pushed aside, too easy for people to overlook him. Sam had gone to school, his father had walked away, and Kerri had never called, not once. When he was out of sight, he was also out of mind and that was the biggest fear Dean ever faced.

Dean was pulled from his mind by the sound of someone descending the back stairs, making their way to the kitchen. The blonde hunter closed his eyes, leaning back against the soft pillows behind him, taking in all the smells and sounds of the old house. He really did love it there. It was the closest thing to home he had since the fire, the closest to normal he had ever been. He was safe there, whole there, loved there. His family seemed stronger when they were in Valley, less weathered, less beaten down. It was something Dean couldn't explain but something he needed desperately.

But something had changed while he was being held captive, something he needed to know. Kerri and Sam had always gotten along well, Kerri acting a bit like an older sibling to the kid. But ever since they returned from the clinic they'd both been lost in their own little worlds. And except for being overbearing caregivers whenever Dean moved, they both seemed more than preoccupied. Sam was either in the library or out somewhere alone, and Kerri was just wandering around the house in a daze.

Dean listened to the occupant of the kitchen, a few short footsteps telling him it was someone much smaller than his six-foot-five brother. "Kerri?"

"Yeah, you ok?" Kerri asked, appearing at the doorway a second later, a mug in her hand.

"Coffee?" Dean eyed the mug in Kerri's hand, pushing himself up on his elbows.

"I'm making tea, actually. And you're off the good stuff, doctor's orders."

"Since when do you follow orders?"

"Since you nearly died. Caffeine will dehydrate you, which is what we're trying to avoid." Kerri motioned to the bottle of Gatorade on the coffee table before sitting on the sofa by Dean's legs, forcing the older man to pull in his knees.

"You're over exaggerating."

"No, Dean, I'm not, but believe what you want." Kerri snapped back, standing.

"Wait, wait." Dean lurched forward, grabbing Kerri's arm before she could get off the sofa. "Look, Ker, I'm sorry. It was a close one, but, you know, can't we just forget about it."

Kerri bowed her head, a single tear falling from her eyes as she sat back on the sofa. Dean felt his heart plummet, his adrenaline jumping as he sat up fully, wrapping an arm around Kerri's trembling shoulders. "Ker?"

"I can't forget it, Dean. I thought you were dead. I saw you laying there and now every time I close my eyes it's all I can see. And I just want it to stop."

Dean moved closer, running his hand up and down her back. She was shaking, though he could tell she was trying to gain some kind of control over her tumbling emotions. It had been a long few days, for all of them. Kerri took another deep breath, Dean resting his hand on the back of her neck. He needed her to talk to him, needed to understand her the way he used to, to talk with her the way he used to.

"I'll do anything I can to help you."

Kerri looked up at him, her blue eyes searching. "What?"

"What's in your head— I'll do anything in my power to make it right. If I knew what was going on I never would have let it happen."

"It's not your fault, Dean."

"It might not be my fault, but it's my problem now, it's our problem. You've been by yourself too long, I should have come back sooner."

"What's done is done."

"Ker—." Dean began, moving closer still. He needed to be near her, needed to feel her, to know she was still there for him, that she'd always be there for him. Dean wanted to ask her about her life without him, wanted to know about each and every moment he had missed, but he just couldn't find the words.

When had she become so withdrawn? When had she met Brian and what the hell had she seen in the guy in the first place? And when did she find out what her father had done? Dean's mind drifted back to another secret Tom Harrison had kept from his eldest daughter, a secret Dean had learned at the age of six. He took a deep breath, his hand sliding away from Kerri's back and onto her knee— she'd been used by too many people, been hurt by too many people, and Dean was going to put a stop to it. She was his to protect, his to care for, his to love— and he wasn't going to let anyone else put her through more pain.

"What was it like, you know, without us?" Dean asked after a few minutes, still staying in physical contact with the redhead.

"Different."

"That's it, just 'different'."

"I don't know what you wanna hear, Dean."

"I wanna hear the truth, Kerri. Don't tell me you're fine, don't make up some story just cause you think it's what I want. Ker, you were my best friend— for a long time— but lately, I feel like I've been losing you."

Kerri looked up at the statement, staring deep into Dean's green eyes. And, in that instant he could feel the years slip away. He was looking at the Kerri he remembered for the first time in a very long time. "Ev kind of snapped."

"What do you mean she snapped?"

"I don't really know how to explain it. For the first couple weeks she would sit at the end of the drive, hell I even had to bring her dinner there. She was convinced you were gonna come back. I mean, convinced, no one could change her mind."

"How'd you get her to snap out of it?"

"I didn't really. She was never the same. When we were all together I guess I never really saw what she was going through. There was always something going on, always someone doing something, I guess I just missed how attached she really was. And she hated Brian, I mean, hated him."

"Speaking of Brian, how'd you get involved with a guy like that anyway?"

"A guy like what, normal?"

"Yeah. No offense, but you never struck me as the happy housewife."

"I don't know. He moved to Valley a few years ago, and the crazy guy fell for me. I'm honestly just as baffled as you. I was delivering some windows to one of the antique stores in town and he was there, said he saw me on the sidewalk and was never the same."

"What were you stripping or something?"

Kerri laughed, a full laugh Dean hadn't heard in ages— he'd forgotten how much he missed the sound. "One track Winchester never fails to deliver. Apparently he can see through my crazy 'redhead demon' exterior and into my inner awesomeness."

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. But marry him?"

"I don't know. I guess I was looking for a way out and he came at the right time."

"A way out of hunting?"

"A way out of everything. Out of Valley, out of my family, out of hunting."

"Out of your family?"

"For a bunch of guys that visited a couple times a year, the hole you left behind was pretty damn impressive. Dad kept going away on 'business' and Evelyn got kind of creepy. You know she used to follow me no matter where I went, it was like she was my own personal ninja. I just don't know what happened to her."

"I do." Dean began, his mind drifting back to one terrifying and rain soaked summer. He knew exactly when Evelyn had begun to change. "The Watcher."

"You think it did something to her that we missed?" Kerri began, her eyes growing wide at the idea that she could have let her sister suffer.

"No, not supernatural anyway. It was the first time she'd ever seen anything supernatural, the first time she really understood what our dad's did. And it nearly killed us all. When you were missing, Ker, she would just sit at the back door and wait for me to bring you back, and I couldn't." Dean's voice cracked at the memory, the fears of that long ago hunt coming back like a wave. It had been in that exact room when Evelyn saw the Watcher the first time.

"The way she looked at me, each day the hope in her eyes drained a little bit more. But then you came back and she kind of rebounded— but it wasn't the last hunt."

"I know, '92 was the year you got hit up by that black dog— you were pretty ripped up. Ev sat by the door all night just watching you, making sure you were still there."

"We really did let her down, didn't we." Dean began, his voice hitching as he spoke.

Whenever he thought of Evelyn he though of that dark haired little girl and her tea parties, her pigtails bouncing on her shoulders as she bounded around the house. She was always so full of life, always so giving, so loving— she wore her heart on her sleeve for all to see. But the hunting world took and took, and over time that constant beating took its toll on the little brunette. She learned early on that if you didn't fight for what you had, it was very easy to lose it all. Dean always labeled Kerri as the withdrawn one, the secluded one— but Ev had been a mystery he never fully understood. She put on a brave front, acted the way she thought the world wanted her to— and that hid all the turmoil buried beneath.

"I should have done more after you left, but—." Kerri shrugged, and Dean knew they were now going into uncharted territory.

"But what?"

"I found out what my father was doing. He made me promise to keep it a secret, made up some bull story. He didn't wanna scare Evelyn. As much as he loved her, I think he knew even less about her than we did."

"Bull story? So, he never out and out told you?"

"Nope. He was always real withdrawn about it."

"I'd hope so, he was freaking screwing with your brain and he put you in danger." Dean growled, trying to contain his emotions. He had liked Tom Harrison, had respected the man. But the moment he found out what Tom had done to Kerri that respect was stripped away. "How'd you find out anyway?"

"The procedure had a few— side effects."

"Side effects? What the hell kind of side effects?" Dean asked, gripping Kerri's arm, turning her to face him. He didn't want her ducking away, didn't want her shrugging this off. He wanted her to look him in the eye and tell him the complete story.

"The brain's only so big."

"Cut to the chase, Kerri, what are the side effects?" Dean couldn't lose her, not now, not ever.

"Well— I can control it now."

"Spit it out."

"When my head got too full the memories would kind of fight for dominance, against the real world and other memories. It triggered seizures."

Dean's heart beat painfully in his chest, his grip on her shoulders tightening as he tired to take in what she was saying. She'd had seizures and her father had asked her to cover it up. It was unreal.

"He told people I had epilepsy and they bought it. Over time I learned how to let the memories run without them effecting my daily life."

"So they're running through your head even now?"

"Yeah, it's kind of like having a tv on in the background. I'm pretty used to it at this point."

"But you're still learning? I mean, the hunts you've been on with us, they're in there?"

Kerri looked down, fidgeting with a ring she was wearing, "yeah."

"How much more information can you fit in there? I mean, you can't dump the excess."

"I don't really know, my dad didn't either. That's why he was extra careful."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He kept me quarantined for a while. He didn't want me over loading out there in the big bad real world. Brian was a way out, my only way out."

"You could have called me. I would have come back for you, Kerri."

"Would you?"

"What kind of question is that?" Dean snapped, he'd never desert her.

"If it was back then, before Evelyn died, before Sam went to college, before we found out what the Yellow Eyed Demon was really after— before everything we know now. If I asked you to take me away, to go against an order and just drive off somewhere, would you?"

Dean's heart was telling him to scream yes, to sweep her up into his arms and take her away at that instant, to ease each and every fear that plagued her. But he had changed, too. Would he have gone against his father, dropped everything, turned on his family when he was seventeen? He probably would have tried talking to Tom, or convincing his dad to let Kerri stay with them— neither of which the younger girl needed. He wanted to say he would have taken her away to a place where there were no monsters, no demons, nothing bad, but when he was young turning his back on everything he knew just wasn't an option.

"How long were you quarantined?"

Kerri took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before answering. "My first attack was a few months after you left. I met Brian when I was twenty three, so eight years."

"Eight years stuck in the house!"

"No, eight years stuck in Valley, I was allowed out of my house. I'm not Cinderella."

"Ker, this isn't funny."

"Believe me, Dean, I know that."

"After they died, you quarantined yourself, didn't you." Dean began, a sad reality finally dawning on him— this was the reason Kerri was alone.

"My dad never told me much about it, I basically know what you know. I didn't know how much more I could learn, so I didn't."

"This could kill you?"

"Logically, yeah. But that's not why I wanna stop it. I just— I just want peace."

Dean didn't know what to say, his entire reality crashing. He'd just found Kerri again, just stumbled back into her life— and now he was finding out she might be lost. He pulled her toward him, holding onto her, refusing to let the world steal her away. He felt her return the embrace, something growing in him as they sat in silence. He felt protective of the woman in his arms, felt comfort at Kerri's side, felt whole and complete in the old house. He wanted to hold onto her forever. He wanted to keep the world away from her, to erase the memories trapped in her mind, to wipe away every one of her tears, subdue each and every fear.

He wanted her to be his— hell, she was his. Something about their friendship had triggered the painting of Tir-na-nog, and it was that same bond that had sustained them both to adulthood. And Dean had to save her. He rested his forehead on her shoulder, his cheek resting against the soft skin of her neck. He ran his hand through her long hair as he pulled her closer still, her body against his— she was trembling. They were standing on the brink, balancing on the edge of a knife, and Dean was terrified one of them would fall.

"Where's Sammy?" Dean asked, pulling away from Kerri after what felt like a lifetime. Sam could help him fix this, could research some way to save her.

"I'm not sure, but I think he might be at the cemetery."

"What? Why?"

"He's been asking about Evelyn a lot, something's going on with him. He saw her, Dean."

"Huh?"

"It was the Trickster, when he passed out, but Sam said it looked like Ev. Ever since then he's been kind of out of it about the whole thing— he wouldn't tell me anything about it. And he's been having these weird fainting spells."

"What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"It happened when you were missing, and then everything just—. From what you described it looks like he's been having visions, but he won't talk about it. I'm sorry, Dean."

"It's not your fault." Dean began, rubbing the back of her neck as he pulled his phone from his pocket. "We'll get our little geek back, make him spill the beans and then find a way to help you. All in a day's work." Dean smirked, flipping open his phone.

"And after you right all the wrong in the world, what'll you do with your boundless free time." Kerri chided, her hand resting comfortably on his arm, her smile back to full power.

"I was thinking about a bike ride."

"Oh, I never told you. I upgraded."

"Motorcycle?" Dean asked, putting the phone to his ear.

"ATV."

"Awesome." Dean listened as the phone rang, a deep sense of foreboding growing in him that he couldn't explain. Something was wrong, he could feel it in his bones.

_"Hi, this is Sam. I can't get to the phone, so leave a message and I'll get back to you."_


End file.
